Greater London · London and the South East
Pre-Purchase Roof Survey in Adelphi
A roof survey before you buy a house or flat around Adelphi, with findings in writing and pictures to back them up. Book a weekday or weekend visit.
- Quick fixes on flashings and valleys
- Damp timbers or stains in the loft
- Sagging ridge lines or uneven roof slopes
Pre-purchase roof survey in Adelphi
Tall, steep or hidden roofs are hard to judge from the street. Our Premium Survey includes thermal imaging and, where applicable, a drone inspection, and the report arrives the same day. If airspace rules or the weather rule out a flight, we’ll say so and inspect from every other safe vantage point. If you’re worried about gaps where slates or tiles have come loose and cracked flaunching or crumbling chimney pointing, we can find out what’s behind it, on natural slate, gutters and downpipes and clay and concrete tiles alike.
Many London homes have been converted into flats, extended at the back or given a loft conversion with a dormer. Each change adds roof details, such as flat roofs, new flashings and junctions with the original slopes. If you’re buying a flat or house in Adelphi, or have just had new roofing work done, those junctions are often where problems start. Dormer cheeks, lead work and new flat roofs are worth checking closely, as faults there are easy to miss.
If any part of the roof couldn’t be seen safely, we say so in the report. You will know exactly what was inspected and what wasn’t.
- Place
- Adelphi (W1D, W1F, WC2H)
- Region
- Greater London
- Cost
- From £150 inc. VAT
- Reports
- A written report with photos, by email
- When we survey
- Monday to Sunday, daytime
- Insurance
- Professional indemnity and public liability
- Phone
- 07833 053749
- Page updated
- 27 October 2026
Landlord and commercial surveys in Adelphi
Businesses and commercial landlords can book us too. Bigger roofs take more time, and they’re priced for the size.
If you own several properties, you can book surveys for several addresses. To arrange surveys for several addresses, phone 07833 053749 or email us with the addresses.
Places near Adelphi
Other services in Adelphi
Useful tips for Adelphi property owners
A few practical points come up again and again on our surveys. They apply to most roofs:
- Mention any deadline when you get in touch
- Notice patches of new decoration in top-floor rooms
- Find out whether the roof has been replaced or patched
- Ask the agent to check the loft hatch can be opened
The Standard Survey includes a follow-up consultation to talk the findings through, while Premium includes a consultation in person. If anything in the report isn’t clear, ask us.
After strong winds, look at the roof from ground level. Pieces of slate or tile in the garden mean something has moved. Small repairs done quickly stop bigger problems later.
Questions from Adelphi
Is drone flying allowed in Adelphi?
That depends on where the roof is and on the weather. Adelphi is about 2 miles from the edge of the flight restriction zone around London Heliport in Battersea. The exact boundary is checked for each address before any flight, and a roof inside it needs permission before we fly. Adelphi is about 2 miles from the restricted area over the City of London, where drone flights need permission from NATS. If a roof falls inside it, we apply for permission before flying, and the flight only goes ahead if it is granted. Across London there are restriction zones around Heathrow, London City and London Heliport, plus restricted areas over Hyde Park, the City of London and the Isle of Dogs. Each address is checked against all of them before the drone goes up. A small drone can’t fly safely in strong wind or heavy rain, and the rest of the survey does not depend on the drone.
Does a conservation area affect roof work in Adelphi?
You can check whether a building is listed on Historic England’s list, and your council can tell you if it is in a conservation area. If a home is listed, changes that affect its special interest need listed building consent, and in a conservation area re-roofing in different materials may need permission.
How do I book a survey in Adelphi?
To book, phone 07833 053749 or send us an email and tell us the address and what you want to find out. We’ll confirm the price and agree a day with you.
Do I need a roof survey if I’m having a RICS survey?
They do different things. A RICS home survey covers the whole building, while ours looks only at the roof, in more detail. Ours sits alongside a RICS survey rather than replacing it.
Can I use the report to negotiate on price?
Yes. The report sets out what we found, with photos, which you can share with the seller or agent. How the seller responds is up to them.
At what stage of buying should I get the roof surveyed?
Book as soon as your offer is agreed. The report is most useful before exchange, while you can still ask questions and negotiate.
Does someone need to be in?
If the survey includes the loft or the inside of the building, someone needs to let us in. We’ll talk about access when booking.
How we price pre-purchase roof surveys
Prices always include VAT. What changes the price is:
- Extra roofs, like extensions, dormers or garages
- Commercial roofs and larger buildings
- How tall the building is and how easy the roof is to see
- How big the roof is
Every price we give includes VAT, and the written report is part of the package. Pre-purchase roof survey starts from £150, including VAT. Size, height and access decide where your roof falls.
What to let us know when you get in touch
When you call or email, these details help:
- Pictures from the garden or a window, if you have them
- Any deadline, like an exchange date
- The type of building and roof, like pitched or flat
- Where the property is, with the postcode
We survey roofs on weekdays, Saturdays and Sundays. To arrange a day that suits you, call 07833 053749 or email us with the address and the days you’d prefer.
What we do, step by step
When we arrive, we begin with a quick chat about the roof and anything that’s worrying you. We then inspect everything that can be seen safely, using the ground, windows, the loft and a drone where it applies. Most surveys take about one to two hours on an ordinary house, and longer for a large or complex roof. London terraces rarely offer a view of the whole roof from one spot, so a visit in Adelphi moves between viewpoints: the pavement, upstairs windows, the loft and any safe spot at the back. If other people live in the building, tell us who can let us into the shared parts.
- You get in touch after your offer is agreed, with the address and your target exchange date.
- We arrange access with you, the agent or the seller.
- We inspect the roof from the ground, windows, the loft and the roof itself where it is safe.
- Coverings, ridges, valleys, flashings, chimneys and gutters are checked and photographed.
- We email a report with photographs and recommendations, ready for you to use before exchange.
How to prepare
- Note where any stains or damp appear
- Check pets are kept safely away
- Move anything stored under the loft hatch
Booking a survey
Pre-purchase roof survey starts from £150, including VAT. The exact figure depends on the roof and the package, and you can ring 07833 053749 or email us to find out.
Related advice
Do you need a pre-purchase roof survey in Adelphi?
Patch repairs are common on roofs of every age. Bitumen over flashings, mortar fillets in place of lead and odd replacement tiles can point to a problem that keeps coming back. Our report records them so you can ask the seller what was done and when.
Things that often lead to a survey include:
- Ponding, blisters or splits on a flat roof
- Slipped or missing slates and tiles
- Patch repairs that may hide an ongoing problem
- Signs of past leaks inside the loft
If you let a flat or house near London Charing Cross station, a survey before purchase, or before signing off a new roof, saves surprises once a tenant moves in.
Questions to ask before booking
- What they won’t be able to tell you
- Whether VAT is in the quoted price
- Whether they hold professional indemnity and public liability insurance
- Which parts of the roof they’ll actually see
What we look for on each type of roof
Flat roofs
Flat roofs on extensions, dormers and garages are easy to forget about. Felt often lasts around 15 to 20 years, EPDM rubber 30 to 50 and GRP up to about 30. We look for signs of age and failure.
Gutters and parapets
The rainwater system keeps water off the walls. Leaking joints, sagging lengths and blockages are all noted.
What a pre-purchase roof survey looks like in Adelphi
The restricted area over the City of London, where drone flights need permission from NATS, is about 2 miles from Adelphi. If the drone is used for your survey, we check whether the address falls inside it before flying. Adelphi is about 2 miles from the edge of the flight restriction zone around London Heliport in Battersea. Where the drone is part of the survey, the exact boundary is checked for the address first.
For a London address like Adelphi, it helps to know about controlled parking before the day. Historic houses like Benjamin Franklin House, about 0.2 miles south-west, show how far back building around Adelphi goes. When you buy an older home, the roof’s age, past repairs and any listing all affect what you might spend later.
Adelphi is about 1 mile south-east of Marylebone, in Greater London. We provide pre-purchase roof surveys for householders, landlords and businesses in Adelphi and nearby. We cover towns and villages across Greater London, from the larger towns to small villages.
All of W1D, W1F and WC2H is covered for pre-purchase roof surveys, from the main roads to the quietest streets. If you need a pre-purchase roof survey at a property on York Road, Drury Lane and Maiden Lane or anywhere close by, we can survey it. You will find Adelphi on the A301 and A400, so it’s easy for us to get to. If you are just outside Adelphi, we cover Covent Garden (1 mile north), Charing Cross (1 mile south-west), Aldwych (1 mile north-east), Seven Dials (1 mile north-west) and West End (1 mile north-west). Larger places within reach include Kensington (3 miles west), Walthamstow (7 miles north-east), Hampstead (4 miles north-west), Ruislip (13 miles west), Stockwell (3 miles south) and Orpington (13 miles south-east).
Local landmarks in Adelphi
We work in homes and buildings around The BFI Reuben Library, St Andrew's and St John's Church of England Primary School and London Nautical School. Nearby too are Victoria Embankment Gardens (under half a mile south) and The Theodore Bullfrog pub (under half a mile south-west). Adelphi has its own railway station: London Charing Cross station. Other landmarks nearby include London Museum and Institute of Natural History (within half a mile north-east) and Montfichet's Tower (1 mile east). Not far away are St. James's Park Lake and Barnsbury Wood.