Greater London · London and the South East
Edgware Pre-Purchase Roof Survey
A roof survey before you buy a house or flat across Edgware, using drones and thermal imaging where applicable. Get in touch for a price.
- Roof slopes that look uneven or sagging
- Lead that has worked loose at a wall or chimney
- Signs of past leaks inside the loft
Edgware: your questions answered
Will parking be an issue for a roof survey in Edgware?
Sometimes, yes. Where there are permit zones, a visitor permit or nearby pay-and-display bay works well.
Can you fly a drone over a roof in Edgware?
The answer turns on the exact location and the conditions on the day. 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. Every flight is checked against the Drone Safety Map first, including zones around airports and prisons. The flight also waits for calm, dry weather.
Do you inspect the roof from on top?
Only where it is safe. Many roofs can be seen well from windows, vantage points and the loft, and a drone is part of the Premium Survey where applicable.
Is this the same as a RICS Level 2 or Level 3 survey?
No. Our survey looks at the roof only, and it is not a RICS home survey. It works alongside a home survey.
Can you tell me if my roof has asbestos?
No. We can flag materials that might contain asbestos, but confirming it is a job for a specialist asbestos surveyor. Buildings built or refurbished before 2000 may contain it.
Which days do you carry out surveys?
Visits run seven days a week in the daytime, which suits people who work during the week. Just say which days work for you.
Will you need to get into the loft?
Ideally, yes. The loft tells us a lot about the roof, and views from upper windows help too. The agent or seller can arrange entry.
Pre-purchase roof survey in Edgware: what you get
Buying a home is a big commitment, and the roof is one of the costliest parts to put right. Our pre-purchase roof survey gives you a close look at it before you’re committed. We check the coverings, ridges, valleys, flashings, chimneys and gutters, and the loft space where it’s safe to get in. The findings come in a written report with photos. Common reasons to book are roof slopes that look uneven or sagging and quick fixes on flashings and valleys, on lead flashings and valleys, natural slate and chimney stacks.
In a London terrace or conversion, the roof often joins the neighbours’ roofs and shares their stacks and gutters, with parapet walls and party-wall upstands marking where one roof ends and the next begins. For a purchase or a new roof in Edgware, that shapes what can be checked: we inspect what we are given access to and can see safely, which may not include a neighbour’s side. For a flat, the lease normally says who looks after the roof.
Most points in the report come with a picture, so you can see each defect rather than just read about it. Anything out of sight on the day is listed as such.
- Place
- Edgware (HA8, NW7, HA7)
- Region
- Greater London
- Cost
- From £150 inc. VAT
- Report
- Emailed report with photos and recommendations
- Appointments
- Weekdays and weekends
- Cover
- Professional indemnity and public liability
- Call
- 07833 053749
- Updated
- 27 October 2026
How the survey changes by roof type
Clay and concrete tiles
Concrete interlocking tiles are common on post-war and newer homes. They wear slowly, but surfaces erode and edges crack, and low-pitched roofs need their laps to be right.
Chimney stacks
Chimney stacks take the brunt of the weather. We check the pots, the flaunching, the pointing and the flashings.
What this survey can’t tell you
Without opening up the roof, some things stay hidden, and that sets some limits:
- Faults hidden behind ceilings, boards or coverings
- Whether materials contain asbestos (that needs a specialist asbestos surveyor)
- A structural engineer’s report
If in doubt, phone 07833 053749 or drop us an email and we will suggest the right survey. What our survey covers.
Roof types and parts we check
- Chimney stacks
- Clay and concrete tiles
- The roof space
- Flat-roofed extensions and dormers
- Lead flashings and valleys
- Gutters and downpipes
- Natural slate
What we do, step by step
There is not much for you to do on the day. Point out anything you’ve noticed, like stains, drips or loose pieces, and we’ll get on with the inspection. A typical survey takes an hour or two at the house you’re buying, depending on its size and how much of the roof can be seen. In Edgware, visits are available on weekdays and at weekends. It helps if you can point us to a visitor permit or a nearby bay, and to clear a path to the loft hatch. A back bedroom window can be the best vantage point for a rear addition, so we may ask to use one.
- You choose a Basic, Standard or Premium Survey to suit the home you’re buying.
- We agree a visit, including weekends if that helps.
- 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.
- You receive the report, with findings prioritised by urgency, so you can raise them with the seller.
How to prepare
- Keep pets inside or away from the areas we’re looking at
- Have keys ready for side gates, garages or roof access doors
- Gather any invoices or paperwork from past roof work
Arrange a survey
You can call us seven days a week. To book or ask a question, phone 07833 053749 or email us.
Advice
Other services in Edgware
Buying a home or a new roof in Edgware
Further from the centre, London’s housing takes in interwar semis with hipped roofs in clay or concrete tiles as well as slate-roofed terraces. Hips, bay roofs and later loft conversions are typical of those semis, if your home is one of them. Each material has its own typical faults, which is what a buyer or the owner of a new roof needs to know about. Where the drone is part of the survey, the flight is checked against the Drone Safety Map first.
If you let a flat or house near Mill Hill Broadway station, a survey before purchase, or before signing off a new roof, saves surprises once a tenant moves in. Controlled parking zones are common in London, so mention any permit rules for Edgware, along with any off-street space.
Edgware is about 4 miles west of Finchley, in Greater London. In Edgware, as across Greater London, every roof gets the same careful survey. We cover towns and villages across Greater London, from the larger towns to small villages. For surveys nearby, see our London page.
We survey roofs across the HA8, NW7 and HA7 postcode area for pre-purchase roof surveys. If you need a pre-purchase roof survey at a property on Station Road, Edgware Road High Street and Hillcrest Avenue or anywhere close by, we can survey it. Edgware is on the A5100, which makes it simple to reach. We also cover The Hale (1 mile east), Broadfields Estate (1 mile north), Burnt Oak (1 mile south-east), Canons Park (1 mile south-west) and Little Stanmore (1 mile south-west). Within a short drive, we also cover London (11 miles south-east), City of Westminster (9 miles south-east), Marylebone (9 miles south-east), Kensington (9 miles south), St Pancras (9 miles south-east) and Shoreditch (10 miles south-east).
Landmarks near Edgware
Locally, jobs take us to homes and businesses close to The Northgate School, Railway Hotel and London Academy, among other places. The closest station to Edgware is Mill Hill Broadway station, about 1.1 miles south-east of the centre. Well-known places in the area include Hilfield Castle (3.6 miles north-west) and Broadwalk Centre (0.5 miles south-west). Open spaces near Edgware include Darland's Lake and Mill Hill Old Railway Nature Reserve.
Do you need a pre-purchase roof survey in Edgware?
Blocked or leaking gutters do damage that is not obvious at first. Water spilling over a gutter soaks brickwork and can rot fascias and rafter ends. Valley and parapet gutters can overflow inside the house. They’re part of what we look at.
Look out for signs like these:
- Slipped or missing slates and tiles
- Chimney mortar that has eroded
- Sagging ridge lines or uneven roof slopes
- Lead that has worked loose at a wall or chimney
For an older house near a landmark like St Andrew, the roof’s history matters as much as its looks, and a survey brings the past repairs to light.
Before booking any roof surveyor
- Will they check the loft as well as the outside?
- What the survey will not cover
- Do they have a CAA Flyer ID and Operator ID for drone work?
- What follow-up you get after the report
Tips from our surveys
Over many surveys, some simple habits stand out as worth the effort:
- Request records of any re-roofing
- Let us know your exchange date when you book
- Ask the seller about past roof repairs
- Ask for loft access on the day
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 is not clear, ask us.
Keep an eye on chimneys and flashings in your new home. Look for leaning pots, missing mortar and lifted lead. Binoculars from ground level are enough for a first look.
What you can safely check yourself
During heavy rain, look at the gutters from ground level or a window. Water spilling over the edge can point to a blockage or a sagging run.
The one thing to avoid is getting up close. Roofs are fragile and slippery, and falls from height are serious. That part is for a survey, using safe viewpoints and a drone where it applies.