There is a distinction between someone who describes themselves as a surveyor and a Chartered Surveyor.
For a straightforward job, the distinction may not seem important at first. However, if the advice given will influence a house purchase, a business lease, an investment decision, or even a legal matter, it is worth understanding exactly what the difference is.
What Is the Difference Between a Surveyor and a Chartered Surveyor?
The title “surveyor” does not indicate a particular professional status. People working in many areas of the property market, or in sectors like construction, can legitimately describe themselves as surveyors. However, qualifications and experience vary considerably among individuals.
A Chartered Surveyor:
- Has professional membership of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS).
- Members normally use the letters MRICS after their name, while Fellows use FRICS.
- To warrant chartered status, you must demonstratea well-defined level of knowledge, professional experience and competence.
- Chartered Surveyors adhere to all RICS professional standards and commit to continuing professional development.
Of course, there are surveyors who hold other relevant qualifications, including RICS Associate members. The point is that chartered status gives a client an immediately recognisable benchmark of professional competence and regulation.
Why Does Chartered Status Matter?
If you are involved in a property transaction, it’s very important that you have the right information at your fingertips. That goes for everyone, from the person buying a residential property to the developer considering buying land to build a new estate on.
This is not a time for guesswork, however cheap it may seem at first.
If a structural problem is overlooked before exchanging contracts on a house, the resulting repair may cost you a lot more. If you are given poor or incomplete advice on a commercial lease, once you have signed, it can have implications for years to come.
A Chartered Surveyor means you have a strong professional framework behind the advice you receive. RICS members work to well-defined rules, including those governing their professional behaviour, competence, and the service they provide. RICS-regulated firms are also required to have processes in place for handling client complaints.
It is always sensible to still check that the individual has experience relevant to the work you need, whether they are fully qualified or not. A surveyor who specialises in residential Building Surveys, for example, will have different expertise from someone focused on agricultural land or commercial properties.
Home Surveys and Residential Property
The most common area that a chartered surveyor can help with is a residential survey. This is an independent assessment of the condition of the property you are considering buying.
Wignalls provides three types of reports depending on the property:
- Level 1 Condition Report:This is ideal for modern properties that seem in good condition.
- Level 2 Home Survey:This is a more detailed report that looks at potential defects and other matters that will require attention by the property purchaser.
- Level 3 Building Survey:This is even more detailed and suited to older or unusual properties.
RICS Property Valuations
Surveying and valuation serve different purposes.A home survey primarily concerns the condition of a building. A valuation, of course, establishes the marketvalue.
Estate agents usually value a property, but their assessment isn’t always appropriate. You may instead require a valuation undertaken by an appropriately qualified RICS Registered Valuer.
RICS Red Book valuations are the gold standard, and they are often used for the sale of both residential and commercial properties. These standardised valuations can also be used in divorce proceedings, for investment portfolios and Help to Buy and shared ownership arrangements.
It’s not just the state of the property that matters but the valuer also needs to have a deep understanding of the current market in a particular area.
Commercial Property Advice
Chartered Surveyors play a big role in the commercial property market.
Buying, leasing or owning business premises introduces issues that simply do not arise with a residential property purchase. There are issues such as lease terms, tenant repair obligations, and rental values to consider.
Wignalls’ commercial surveying servicescover areas such as rent reviews, lease renewals, commercial valuations, and disposal of freehold and leasehold premises. It’s not just about understanding the structure of a building and the marketplace but the underlying practical considerations that can have long-term impacts if they are not correct.
Land, Boundaries and Property Plans
Landowners may require surveys forboundary, title, or dispute purposes. Accurate plans may also be needed for Land Registry submissions or as part of a property transaction.
Wignalls undertakes land surveying work, including boundary surveys, assistance with boundary disputes, and the production of Land Registry-compliant plans.
Planning, Development and Rural Property
Planning and development in rural areas can be a complicated business. That’s why a multidisciplinary chartered surveying practice can come in useful. For example, you might be a landowner considering a development. You might need an initial valuation and advice, but once that is received, you may then need help from a specialist planning consultant.
Wignalls combines Chartered Surveyors with experienced planning and property professionals. That means you don’t have to rely on one surveyor attempting to do everything. The appropriate specialist is brought into the discussion when a property development crosses professional boundaries.
Surveyor or Chartered Surveyor
There are competent professionals who do not hold chartered status, and for smaller projects these are fine. Qualifications, experience and the exact scope of the job should always be considered, however.
For important property decisions, bringing on board a Chartered Surveyor is critical.They provide the gold-standard level of professional qualification and accountability, backed by the RICS.