Isle of Wight · London and the South East
Pre-purchase roof survey in Fishbourne, Isle of Wight
Find out what’s going on with the roof before you spend money on it. We carry out pre-purchase roof surveys in Fishbourne.
- Slipped or missing slates and tiles
- Sagging ridge lines or uneven roof slopes
- Lead that has worked loose at a wall or chimney
Pre-purchase roof surveys for homes and businesses in Fishbourne
A RICS Level 2 or Level 3 survey covers the whole building, and the roof is only one part of it. Our survey is not a RICS survey, and it does not replace one. It adds a focused look at the roof on its own, with photographs of what we find and written recommendations. The two sit side by side if you want the fullest picture. We survey the roof space, gutters and downpipes and clay and concrete tiles, and the problems we are asked to look at most are ponding, blisters or splits on a flat roof and old water stains in the roof space.
In a village or hamlet like Fishbourne, 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. What’s under the coverings, from old felt to the battens and nails, matters too.
The Standard Survey adds moisture detection, a structural check and a follow-up consultation. The Premium Survey adds thermal imaging, drone inspection where applicable, structural analysis and an in-person consultation.
- Location
- Fishbourne (PO33)
- Region
- Isle of Wight
- Price
- From £150 inc. VAT
- Your report
- Written, with photos, emailed to you
- When we survey
- Monday to Sunday, daytime
- Cover
- PI and public liability insurance
- Telephone
- 07833 053749
- Page updated
- 27 October 2026
Fishbourne questions
Is my home in Fishbourne listed or in a conservation area?
Historic England’s list shows listed buildings, and the local council can tell you about conservation areas. Listed building consent is needed for changes that affect a listed building’s special interest, and conservation areas can limit changes of roofing material.
Will you come out to Fishbourne?
Yes. Fishbourne is within the area we cover, which takes in towns, villages and rural addresses. Our area covers London and the South East. Let us know about access, parking and anything unusual about getting there as you book.
What if it rains on the day?
Some surveys depend on the weather more than others. Drone flights need calm, dry weather, and thermal imaging works best with a dry roof, little wind and a sunny day beforehand. If the conditions are not right, we will talk to you about another date.
Will you fly a drone over my roof?
Where it helps and the rules allow, yes. Our sub-250g drone is flown by a CAA-registered operator with a Flyer ID and Operator ID, and every flight depends on the airspace and the weather.
Will you need to get into the loft?
Where we can, yes. From the roof space we can see staining, timbers and underlay. If access isn’t possible, we note it in the report.
Do you carry professional indemnity insurance?
Our surveys are covered by professional indemnity and public liability insurance. If you need details for a managing agent or a building owner, just ask.
Can you survey at the weekend?
Visits run seven days a week in the daytime. Let us know your preferred days when you book.
What you can safely check yourself
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.
A DIY look is useful, but it is not a survey. From ground level, valleys, flashings and the backs of chimneys are often out of sight, and those are details a survey looks at closely.
How the survey changes by roof type
Flat roofs
Standing water, blisters, splits and tired upstands all point to wear. Blocked outlets are checked as well, and we say what we see from wherever is safe.
Clay and concrete tiles
Many post-war houses have concrete interlocking tiles. They wear slowly, but surfaces erode and edges crack.
What a pre-purchase roof survey doesn’t cover
Our survey is not a RICS Level 2 or Level 3 survey, a structural engineer’s report or an asbestos survey. Other limits to bear in mind:
- Whether the price should change, which is between you and the seller
- A structural engineer’s report
- Anything beyond the roof, which a full home survey covers
If in doubt, phone 07833 053749 or use the contact form and we will point you to the right survey. What our survey covers.
What we check
- Lead flashings and valleys
- Flat-roofed extensions and dormers
- The roof space
- Gutters and downpipes
- Chimney stacks
- Clay and concrete tiles
- Natural slate
Practical tips
A little preparation and a few simple habits help, both for the survey and for the roof itself. Our tips:
- Tell us your exchange date when you book
- Ask the agent to check the loft hatch can be opened
- Ask when the roof was last worked on
- Notice patches of new decoration in top-floor rooms
Once the home is yours, the report becomes a maintenance list. Work through the urgent items before anything else, and use the photos as a record of how the roof looked when you bought. Premium comes with a follow-up after 12 months to see how things have changed.
Once you’ve moved in, keep gutters, valleys and outlets clear, ideally once the leaves have dropped. Overflowing water is behind a lot of damp. Use a gutter contractor rather than going up a ladder yourself.
Rented homes, blocks and businesses
Surveys can also be booked by buyers’ agents acting for a client. Reports are emailed, so they’re easy to pass on.
A roof problem in a let property affects your tenants as well as the building. A survey shows what needs attention, so you can plan the work around your tenants.
How the survey works
There isn’t much for you to do on the day. Point out anything you’ve noticed, such as stains, drips or loose pieces, and we will take it from there. A typical survey takes an hour or two at a typical house, with time for the loft where it can be reached. Rural addresses near Fishbourne can be hard to find from a postcode alone, so a few directions, or a note of a nearby landmark, help us arrive on time. After that, the survey runs as it would anywhere.
- You choose a Basic, Standard or Premium Survey to suit the home you are buying.
- We agree a visit, including weekends if that helps.
- 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.
Before the survey
- If you’re buying, let the agent know when we are coming
- Leave side gates unlocked
- If the roof is shared, arrange access with whoever manages the building
How to book
To arrange a survey, call 07833 053749 or email us and tell us the address and what’s prompted the survey. We’ll confirm the price before booking.
Advice
Nearby places to Fishbourne
Other services in Fishbourne
Fishbourne homes and their roofs
Fishbourne is within about 2 miles of the coast, so there’s more wind and more salt in the air than further inland. Salt is hard on nails, clips and metal flashings, and strong wind lifts anything already loose on a roof, so exposed details get a proper look whether you are buying or signing off new work. Thatch survives on some older Isle of Wight buildings, and the whole island is open to sea air and wind. The covering on a house you’re buying, or on a roof just finished, tells us where to look hardest.
If you let a flat or house near Ryde Esplanade station, a survey before purchase, or before signing off a new roof, saves surprises once a tenant moves in. If you live in an older home near St. Edmund's Church, the roof may have had decades of patch repairs, and the survey shows where they are. Osborne House lies about 2.8 miles north-west, so building around Fishbourne goes back a long way. When you buy an older home, the roof’s age, past repairs and any listing all affect what you might spend later.
Fishbourne is about 2 miles west of Ryde, in the Isle of Wight. We survey roofs in Fishbourne and the surrounding area as part of our work across London and South East England. Fishbourne is one of the places in the Isle of Wight we cover. You can also see our page for Portsmouth.
Surveys in PO33 are booked the same way as anywhere else. We offer pre-purchase roof surveys to properties on Kite Hill, Ashlake Farm Lane and Ashlake Copse Road. Fishbourne sits on or near the B3331. We also cover Wootton (1 mile west), Havenstreet (1 mile south), Hillgrove (2 miles south-west), Whippingham (2 miles west) and Staplers (3 miles south-west). Larger places within reach include Newport (4 miles south-west), Cowes (4 miles north-west), Sandown (6 miles south-east), Shanklin (7 miles south), Ventnor (9 miles south) and East Cowes (3 miles north-west). For harder-to-reach addresses, a little more planning is needed.
Around Fishbourne
In Fishbourne, that means homes and buildings near Ryde Academy and The Fishbourne pub and the streets around them. The closest station to Fishbourne is Ryde Esplanade station, about 2.5 miles east. A little further out are St Mary's Hospital (3.9 miles west) and East Cowes Castle (3.8 miles north-west). Open spaces near Fishbourne include Mill Hill and Briddlesford Nature Reserve.