Kent · London and the South East
Pre-Purchase Roof Survey in Chestfield
Find out the condition of the roof at your property in Chestfield. We visit on weekdays and at weekends.
- Gutters that overflow or drip at the joints
- Standing water on a flat extension roof
- Slipped or missing slates and tiles
Pre-purchase roof survey in Chestfield: what you get
If you’re buying a flat, the roof may well be shared. The lease decides who looks after the roof, and that is frequently not the individual flat owner, with costs often passed on through the service charge. We look at as much of the roof as access safely allows, and the report helps you ask your solicitor or the managing agent the right questions. Where the building has a flat roof, it’s checked as far as access allows. If you’ve noticed roof slopes that look uneven or sagging and slates or tiles that have slipped or gone, a survey will tell you what’s going on, on flat-roofed extensions and dormers, natural slate and lead flashings and valleys alike.
In a village or hamlet like Chestfield, homes are often older cottages and farmhouses alongside a few newer houses. Village roofs can be clay tile, slate, stone or even thatch on some older buildings. Each covering has its own weak points, whether the roof is old or newly laid, and thatch is a specialist material, so we report on what can be seen. What’s under the coverings, from old felt to the battens and nails, matters too.
With the Standard Survey, you also get moisture detection, a structural check and a follow-up consultation. The Premium Survey goes further, with thermal imaging, drone inspection where applicable, structural analysis and an in-person consultation.
- Where
- Chestfield (CT5)
- Region
- Kent
- Cost
- From £150 inc. VAT
- Reports
- A written report with photos, by email
- Appointments
- Weekdays and weekends
- Insurance
- Professional indemnity and public liability
- Call
- 07833 053749
- Page updated
- 27 October 2026
Tips from our surveys
Small things make a difference. Some pointers:
- Share the report with your solicitor
- Ask for any paperwork for recent roof work
- Check we’ll be able to get into the loft space
- Ask the seller about past roof repairs
If you want quotes for the work, roofers can work from the report. The photos show the defects and where they are, so each quote covers the same ground.
Check the roof from the garden and the street after a storm. Slipped slates, lifted ridge tiles and debris on the ground are signs to act on. Small repairs done quickly stop bigger problems later.
What a survey costs
When we price a survey, we consider:
- Whether thermal imaging or a drone is needed
- Height and safe access
- The type of building, from a house to a block or an office
- The shape of the roof and its details
Prices start from £150, inc. VAT, for a Basic Survey. The Standard Survey starts from £250 and the Premium Survey from £400. You’ll know the exact price before booking.
Getting in touch
Here’s what helps us most when you contact us:
- The type of building and roof, like pitched or flat
- Pictures of the roof from a safe spot, if you have them
- Dates you are working to, such as exchange
- Why you want a survey: buying, a leak, a storm or new work
If you have photos of the roof, send them over. Pictures from the ground or a window are fine, and please don’t climb up for a closer look. To get started, call 07833 053749 or drop us an email.
Nearby places to Chestfield
Other services in Chestfield
What we do, step by step
Before we start, let us know why you’ve booked: a purchase, a leak, a storm, new work or simply peace of mind. It helps us focus on what matters most to you. Most visits take about one to two hours at most homes, or half a day or so for a commercial building. Somewhere as small as Chestfield, access is often the only tricky part. Let us know about outbuildings, past repairs and any leaks you’ve noticed. Visits can be on weekdays, Saturdays or Sundays.
- You choose a Basic, Standard or Premium Survey to suit the home you’re buying.
- A date is booked on a weekday, Saturday or Sunday.
- The coverings, ridges, valleys, flashings, chimneys and gutters are inspected and photographed.
- Standard and Premium surveys add the extra checks they include.
- You receive the report, with findings prioritised by urgency, so you can raise them with the seller.
Getting ready for the survey
- Jot down any questions you want answered
- Point out any leaks or damp patches
- Find any records of previous roof work
Booking a survey
Buyers should book once an offer has been accepted, so you have the findings in time to act on them before you exchange. For any other survey, just phone 07833 053749 or use the contact form when you are ready.
Related advice
Checking the roof from the ground
Look up at the roof after a storm, from the ground: broken slates or tiles in the garden, gaps along the ridge or loose lead are signs to note. Leave anything above ground level to a survey.
If you have a loft with safe access, take a look inside. Use a torch and stay on the joists or boards, and look for staining, damp timber or daylight coming through.
Common questions in Chestfield
Do you cover smaller places like Chestfield?
Yes. Chestfield is within the area we cover, which takes in towns, villages and rural addresses. We cover the whole of London and South East England. Just mention lanes, gates or anything else about the route as you book.
How do I find out if my home in Chestfield is listed?
Start with Historic England’s list for listing and your council for conservation areas. Either can affect what roof work is allowed, so it’s worth checking before planning any.
Do you go up on the roof?
Where it’s safe, yes. We inspect from ground level, from windows and vantage points, from the loft and from the roof itself where safe. On Premium, a drone is used where it applies.
How soon is the report ready?
It depends on the package: within 48 hours for Basic, 24 to 48 hours for Standard and the same day for Premium. Tell us your exchange date and we’ll help you choose.
Can I take the findings back to the seller?
Yes, you can. The report sets out what we found, with photos, which you can share with the seller or agent. We cannot promise how the seller will respond.
Can you tell me if my roof has asbestos?
No. Asbestos surveys and sampling aren’t something we do. Where a material might contain it, such as old cement sheets on a building from before 2000, the report flags it.
Can you survey in bad weather?
Light rain does not normally stop a survey. Heavy rain or strong wind can ground a drone and make the roof unsafe, so we’ll agree a new date if the weather is not suitable.
What happens if roof problems are left?
After exchange, any roof defect is yours to deal with. Before then, you can still ask questions, ask for work to be done or reconsider. Finding out later gives you the same facts, but too late to use them in the purchase. Where a roof is exposed, as many are in small places like Chestfield, driving rain gets into any weakness, and older walls, once damp, take a long time to dry.
To find out what your survey will cost, call 07833 053749 or drop us an email with the address and a few details. The price is agreed before a date is set.
Why book with us
- Drone and thermal imaging surveys available
- Packages from £150, with VAT included
- Over 20 years’ experience
- More than 5,000 surveys completed
Take a look at what a roof survey costs or two real surveys.
What a pre-purchase roof survey looks like in Chestfield
Chestfield is within about 1 mile of the coast, where wind off the sea can be strong. A small drone can’t fly safely in strong wind or a downpour, so the weather on the day decides whether a flight goes ahead. Many older homes in Kent have handmade clay tiles, including Kent peg tiles held by pegs through two holes, and tile-hanging on their upper walls. Oast houses and timber-framed Wealden hall houses are part of the county’s older buildings too. Material and age explain a lot of what turns up on the day, whether the roof is old or brand new.
The streets around a church such as Church of St John the Baptist are often among the oldest in a place, and if you own one of the older houses nearby, older patch repairs can hide behind a tidy front slope, and the survey looks past them. If you own a rental within reach of Chestfield & Swalecliffe station, the roof is worth checking before you add another property to a portfolio or pay a roofer in full.
Chestfield is about 1 mile east of Whitstable, in Kent. If you’re in Chestfield, booking works exactly as it does anywhere else: a call or an email, a price, then a date. Our area takes in places right across Kent, from the larger towns to small villages.
Pre-purchase roof surveys in CT5 are booked the same way as anywhere else. That includes homes and businesses on Maydowns Road, Chestfield Road and Woodvale Avenue and the roads around them. With the A2990 close by, Chestfield is easy for us to reach for pre-purchase roof surveys. Neighbouring places we cover for pre-purchase roof surveys include Swalecliffe (1 mile north), Tankerton (1 mile north-west), Radfall (1 mile south), West End (1 mile east) and Whitstable (1 mile west). Further out, we also cover Canterbury (5 miles south), Margate (14 miles east), Sittingbourne (14 miles west), Ramsgate (15 miles east), Faversham (8 miles west) and Herne Bay (3 miles east).
Around Chestfield
Locally, jobs take us to homes and businesses close to The Plough pub and The Whitstable School, among other places. Chestfield has its own railway station: Chestfield & Swalecliffe station. A little further out are Whitstable and Tankerton Hospital (0.7 miles north-west) and Tankerton Castle (1.4 miles north-west). Not far away are West Blean and Thornden Woods.
How the survey changes by roof type
Clay and concrete tiles
Clay plain tiles are common on older South East homes, and some still have peg tiles. Rotten pegs let tiles slide, so we look for gaps along the courses.
Chimney stacks
A stack stands exposed above the roof line. The pots, flaunching, pointing and flashings are all checked.