Greater London · London and the South East
Pre-Purchase Roof Survey in Custom House
We take a careful look at the roof at your property in Custom House, with photographs and a written report.
- Standing water on a flat extension roof
- Quick fixes on flashings and valleys
- Cracked flaunching or crumbling chimney pointing
Signs you need a pre-purchase roof survey in Custom House
The fixings and underlay frequently fail before good slates or tiles do. Natural slate can last 100 years or more, yet the nails holding it rust and let slates slide. That kind of wear is common on older roofs and easy to miss from ground level.
A survey makes sense if you’ve noticed:
- Roof slopes that look uneven or sagging
- Damp timbers or stains in the loft
- Chimney mortar that has eroded
- Patch repairs that may hide an ongoing problem
The streets around a church such as St Matthew's Church are often among the oldest in a place, and if your house is among the older ones nearby, ask the seller about past roof repairs, because older roofs often have patched valleys, replaced slates and reset ridges.
Questions to ask before you book
- Whether VAT is added on top
- What follow-up you get after the report
- Which viewpoints they use to see the roof
- Will they check the loft as well as the outside?
About our pre-purchase roof survey in Custom House
If you’re buying a flat, the roof may well be shared. Depending on the lease, roof repairs may fall to the building owner or a management company. We inspect what access allows us to see safely, and the report helps you ask your solicitor or the managing agent the right questions. If the building has a flat roof, we look at that too where access allows. We are often asked to look into standing water on a flat extension roof and roof slopes that look uneven or sagging, across the roof space, flat-roofed extensions and dormers and chimney stacks.
Many London homes have been converted into flats, extended at the back or given a loft conversion with a dormer. Every alteration brings new junctions, flashings and flat-roof areas to look at. If you’re buying a flat or house in Custom House, or have just had new roofing work done, those junctions are often where problems start. Lead work around dormers and new flat roofs is easy to get wrong and easy to miss.
If any part of the roof couldn’t be seen safely, we say so in the report. You’ll know exactly what was inspected and what wasn’t, and what we’d suggest next.
- Where
- Custom House (E16, E13)
- Region
- Greater London
- Cost
- From £150 inc. VAT
- Report
- Emailed report with photos and recommendations
- When we survey
- Weekdays and weekends
- Insured
- Professional indemnity and public liability
- Telephone
- 07833 053749
- Last updated
- 27 October 2026
Should I look at the roof myself first?
Fresh stains on ceilings or walls after rain are worth noting. Photograph them and note the date, which helps when we look at the roof.
Inside, the loft is a good place to look, with care. Take a torch and only step on boards or joists, checking for stains, damp wood or chinks of daylight.
Also near Custom House
More services for Custom House
Landlord and commercial surveys in Custom House
Landlords and letting agents in Custom House book surveys as well as homeowners. A written report with photos gives you a clear record of the roof.
Businesses and commercial landlords can book us too, from shops and offices to industrial units. Bigger roofs take more time, so they’re priced to suit.
When you need someone else
It’s useful to know what a survey will not do before you book:
- Whether materials contain asbestos (that needs a specialist asbestos surveyor)
- Whether timbers meet design loads
- The condition of the rest of the house (that is a RICS home survey)
Not sure which survey suits your roof? You can call 07833 053749 or send us an email and we’ll tell you. What our survey covers.
What this survey covers
- Clay and concrete tiles
- Chimney stacks
- Flat-roofed extensions and dormers
- Lead flashings and valleys
- Gutters and downpipes
- Natural slate
- The roof space
How the survey works
Every roof is different; as a rough guide, the survey takes about one to two hours at the house you’re buying, depending on its size and how much of the roof can be seen. If you have questions on the day, just ask. In a London area like Custom House, the main things to sort out are parking and access: let us know about parking, the floor the property is on, any shared entrance and loft access. On the day, the roof is looked at from the ground, from windows, from inside the roof space and from the roof where it’s safe.
- After your offer is agreed, you book and share your timetable.
- We arrange access with you, the agent or the seller, including the loft.
- We start outside, looking at the roof from the ground and from vantage points.
- Inside, we check the loft space and look at the roof from windows.
- You get a photo-illustrated written report and recommendations before you exchange.
Before the survey
- If the roof is shared, arrange access with whoever manages the building
- Have keys ready for side gates, garages or roof access doors
- If it is not your property yet, arrange access through the agent
Book a survey
To arrange a survey, ring 07833 053749 or send us an email with the address and what you’d like to know about the roof. You’ll know the price before anything is booked.
Read more
What a pre-purchase roof survey looks like in Custom House
The wider area around Custom House has a long history of building, with Queen's House about 2.3 miles south-west. On older houses around here, roofs often carry the marks of earlier repairs, from replaced slates to new lead, and the council can say whether a home is in a conservation area. Custom House is inside, or right on the edge of, the flight restriction zone around London City Airport. If the drone is used for your survey, we ask the airport for permission first, and only fly if it’s given.
Landlords with a home close to Custom House station may find that it’s worth knowing a roof’s condition before you buy it, or before you sign off new roofing work on it. For a London address like Custom House, it is useful to know about controlled parking before the day, along with any off-street space.
Custom House is about 1 mile south of Canning Town, in Greater London. From houses to flats and shops in Custom House, we can survey the roof on a weekday or at the weekend. We cover towns and villages across Greater London, large and small.
We survey roofs across the E16 and E13 postcode area for pre-purchase roof surveys. If you need a pre-purchase roof survey at a property on Tree Road, Ethel Road and Booth Road or a nearby road, we can help. With the A1020 close by, Custom House is simple for us to get to. We also cover the places around Custom House: West Silvertown (1 mile south-west), Silvertown (1 mile south), Canning Town (1 mile north), Royal Docks (1 mile east) and Limmo Peninsula (1 mile west). Within a short drive, we also cover London (5 miles west), City of Westminster (8 miles west), Marylebone (8 miles west), Kensington (10 miles west), St Pancras (6 miles west) and Shoreditch (5 miles west).
Around Custom House
Around Custom House, our work takes us to homes and buildings near Thames Barrier Park, The Royal Docks Community School and Royal Docks Academy, among other places. Custom House has its own railway station: Custom House station. Nearby you’ll also find Gallions Reach Shopping Park (2.2 miles east) and Charlton Athletic Museum (1.5 miles south). Open spaces near Custom House include Gilbert's Pit and Tower Hill.
What affects the cost of pre-purchase roof surveys
Every roof is different, so prices are confirmed before booking. These are the things that affect it:
- How many separate roofs there are, like extensions, dormers and garages
- Roof area
- Features like valleys, chimneys, dormers and parapets
- Which survey package you book
The Premium Survey includes thermal imaging and drone inspection where it applies, which starts from £400, with VAT included. We will tell you which package suits the questions you have.
Getting in touch
There is no need for technical words. It is enough to let us know:
- What kind of property and roof it is
- How the loft is reached, if there is one
- Pictures of the roof from a safe spot, if you have them
- The property’s address and postcode
When you’re ready to go ahead, ring 07833 053749 or email us. We will suggest a package, agree the price and find a date.
Your questions about pre-purchase roof surveys in Custom House
Is parking a problem for a survey in Custom House?
It can be, so it helps to let us know about permits, visitor bays or off-street space when you book. The visit is then planned around what’s available.
Is drone flying allowed in Custom House?
Usually it comes down to two things: the airspace at the address and the weather. The flight restriction zone around London City Airport covers Custom House, or comes right up to its edge. We ask the airport for permission before flying there, and only fly if it is given. 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. Every London address is checked against them before a flight. Strong wind or a downpour also stops a small drone flying.
What’s the best way to book?
To arrange a survey, phone 07833 053749 or drop 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 you go up on the roof?
Only where it is safe to do so. Much of the inspection is done from the ground, from windows and from the roof space. The Premium Survey adds a drone inspection where applicable.
Do you carry professional indemnity insurance?
Professional indemnity and public liability insurance cover our surveys. Ask if you need details for a managing agent or building owner.
Does the weather affect the survey?
A survey can typically go ahead in light rain. Strong wind or heavy rain can stop drone flights and make roof access unsafe, so if conditions aren’t right we will arrange another day with you.
Is this the same as a RICS Level 2 or Level 3 survey?
No. It’s a roof survey by an experienced roof surveyor, and you get a written report with photos. It doesn’t cover the rest of the property, which a RICS survey does.