West Sussex · London and the South East
Bury Pre-Purchase Roof Survey
A careful look at the roof at your property in Bury, and put it all in a report with photographs.
- Cracked flaunching or crumbling chimney pointing
- Old water stains in the loft space
- Roof slopes that look uneven or sagging
What a pre-purchase roof survey looks like in Bury
Bignor Roman Villa, about 1.7 miles north-west, is one of the historic houses in the wider area around Bury. Older homes in the wider area often have features worth a closer look, such as lead valleys, tall stacks and roofs that have been patched over the years, and the council can say whether a home is in a conservation area. Many older homes in Sussex have handmade clay tiles and tile-hung walls. Horsham stone slab roofs survive on some old Sussex buildings. Whether you are buying or checking new roofing work, knowing the materials helps make sense of what the inspection finds.
If you let a flat or house near Amberley station, a roof report gives you a clear picture before you buy or settle up with a roofer.
Bury is about 7 miles north of Littlehampton, in West Sussex. We visit Bury as part of our work across West Sussex, for houses, flats and commercial buildings. Bury is one of the places in West Sussex we cover for pre-purchase roof surveys. For surveys nearby, see our Brighton page.
We survey roofs across RH20 for pre-purchase roof surveys. If you need a pre-purchase roof survey at a property on The Street, Houghton Lane and Coombe Crescent or a nearby road, we can survey it. If you are just outside Bury, we cover West Burton (1 mile north-west), Amberley (1 mile east), Watersfield (2 miles north), Cross Gate (2 miles east) and Coldwaltham (2 miles north-east). We also work in nearby towns such as Horsham (15 miles north-east), Worthing (9 miles south-east), Bognor Regis (10 miles south-west), Chichester (11 miles south-west), Littlehampton (7 miles south) and Shoreham-by-Sea (14 miles east).
Local landmarks in Bury
In Bury, that means homes and buildings near Dorset House School and the streets around them. The closest station to Bury is Amberley station, roughly 1.2 miles south-east of the centre. A little further out are Amberley Museum (1.2 miles south-east) and Arundel and District Hospital (3.8 miles south). Not far away are Bignor Hill and Amberley Wild Brooks.
Pre-purchase roof surveys for homes and businesses in Bury
If you’re buying a flat, the roof may well be shared. The lease decides who looks after the roof, and that’s often not the individual flat owner, with costs often passed on through the service charge. We check as much of the roof as access safely allows, and the report helps you ask your solicitor or the managing agent the right questions. If the building has a flat roof, we check that too where access allows. We survey natural slate, the roof space and flat-roofed extensions and dormers, and the problems we’re asked to look at most are ponding, blisters or splits on a flat roof and slipped or missing slates and tiles.
Somewhere as small as Bury, older cottages, farmhouses and converted buildings often sit beside a few newer homes. Older roofs there may have clay tiles, slate, stone or, in some places, thatch. Whether you are buying or have just had a roof replaced, each material has its own checks. What’s under the coverings, from old felt to the battens and nails, matters too.
Pictures do a lot of the work in our reports, because a photo of a cracked flashing says more than a paragraph. If something couldn’t be seen safely, the report is clear about it.
- Where
- Bury (RH20)
- Region
- West Sussex
- Price
- From £150 inc. VAT
- Your report
- Emailed report with photos and recommendations
- When we survey
- Monday to Sunday, daytime
- Insured
- Professional indemnity and public liability
- Phone
- 07833 053749
- Updated
- 27 October 2026
Before and after the survey
There’s plenty you can do without going near the roof. What helps most:
- Ask for loft access on the day
- Ask the seller about past roof repairs
- Request records of any re-roofing
- Notice patches of new decoration in top-floor rooms
Your report arrives by email, with photos of what we found. Basic reports come within 48 hours, Standard within 24 to 48 hours and Premium the same day. Each defect is explained in plain words, and recommendations are ranked by urgency where that helps.
Keep the loft ventilated. Poor ventilation lets condensation build up, wetting timbers and insulation. Avoid packing insulation into the eaves so tightly that air cannot flow.
What this survey can’t tell you
It helps to know what a survey will not do before you book:
- Whether the price should change, which is between you and the seller
- The condition of the rest of the house (that is a RICS home survey)
- Faults hidden behind ceilings, boards or coverings
If you are not sure which survey you need, phone 07833 053749 or email us and we will give you a straight answer. The full list of what we check.
What this survey covers
- Natural slate
- Clay and concrete tiles
- Chimney stacks
- The roof space
- Gutters and downpipes
- Flat-roofed extensions and dormers
- Lead flashings and valleys
When to book a survey in Bury
Chimneys take the worst of the weather. Pointing crumbles, flaunching cracks and flashings lift. On terraced and semi-detached homes, a stack may be shared with next door, which can affect how any work is arranged.
Things that often lead to a survey include:
- Lead that has worked loose at a wall or chimney
- Old water stains in the loft space
- Chimney mortar that has eroded
- Ponding, blisters or splits on a flat roof
The streets around a church like The Parish Church of St John the Evangelist are often among the oldest in a place, and if your house is among the older ones nearby, a survey will show how the roof has been repaired before, which helps you judge what’s coming.
Before you book any roof surveyor
- What follow-up you get after the report
- Do they have a CAA Flyer ID and Operator ID for drone work?
- Is VAT included in the price?
- How much experience they have with roofs like yours
What happens on the day
We photograph the roof as we go, so you can see in the report what we found and where. We take close-ups from wherever is safe, including by drone where it’s applicable and the weather allows. Most surveys take about 1–2 hours at a typical house, with time for the loft where it can be reached. For a village or hamlet like Bury, the journey is planned beforehand: let us know about lanes, gates and parking. The roof is looked at from the ground, from windows, from the loft where there’s safe access and from the roof where it is safe.
- We help you pick the package that suits the property.
- A date is booked on a weekday, Saturday or Sunday.
- The coverings, ridges, valleys, flashings, chimneys and gutters are inspected and photographed.
- Moisture detection, structural checks, thermal imaging or a drone are added where your package includes them.
- We send the report with recommendations ranked by urgency, ready for you to discuss with the seller or agent.
Preparing for the visit
- Buyers: confirm access with the estate agent or seller
- Point out any leaks or damp patches
- Dig out any old roof reports or invoices
Booking a survey
When you’re ready to go ahead, phone 07833 053749 or drop us an email. We’ll suggest a package, agree the price and find a date.
Read more
What a survey costs
What a survey costs depends on the time and equipment it needs. That comes down to:
- Height and safe access
- Basic, Standard or Premium
- The type of building, from a house to a block or an office
- Any need for thermal images or a drone flight
Pre-purchase roof survey starts from £150, including VAT. Packages run from Basic at £150 through Standard at £250 to Premium at £400, inc. VAT, and we can help you choose.
Getting in touch
There is no need for technical words. Just tell us:
- Your timetable, like an exchange date
- Anything about access we should know
- The property’s address and postcode
- Any photos you have, taken from the ground or a window
Prices start from £150, including VAT. What you pay depends on the roof’s size, access and the package, so ring 07833 053749 or use the contact form with the details.
Bury questions
Do you carry out roof surveys in Bury?
Yes. We survey roofs across London and South East England, and Bury is part of that. You can ring 07833 053749 or email us with the address and some details.
How do I find out if my home in Bury is listed?
For listing, use Historic England’s list; for conservation areas, ask the council. It matters most if you’re planning to re-roof in a different material.
What insurance do you have?
We hold professional indemnity and public liability insurance.
Is a roof survey worth having alongside a home survey?
That depends on how much you want to know about the roof. Home surveys sometimes suggest a closer look at the roof, and that’s where a roof survey helps. It doesn’t stand in for a RICS survey.
Does your survey replace a RICS home survey?
No. We survey the roof, not the whole building, and it isn’t a RICS home survey. It complements one rather than replacing it.
Is this an asbestos survey?
No. We don’t sample or test for asbestos. The report may flag materials that could contain asbestos on buildings built or refurbished before 2000.
At what stage of buying should I get the roof surveyed?
After your offer is accepted and before you exchange contracts. That gives you time to use the findings, whether that means asking questions or negotiating.
Why get it checked now?
Once you exchange, the roof’s problems become yours. Before then, you can still ask questions, ask for work to be done or reconsider. A survey after you’ve moved in tells you the same things, but with far less room to act on them. For an older or listed building in a place like Bury, repairs may need matching materials and consent, so a defect found early gives time to plan the work properly.
We offer three survey packages: Basic from £150, Standard from £250 and Premium from £400, all with VAT included. The price for your roof depends on its size, access and what you need to know.
Why book with us
- An independent look at the roof
- Packages from £150, including VAT
- Visits on any day of the week
- A report with photographs
See our cost guide and our case studies.