Kent · London and the South East
Pre-Purchase Roof Survey in Ightham
A roof survey before you buy a house or flat around Ightham, with findings in writing and pictures to back them up. Book a weekday or weekend visit.
- Roof slopes that look uneven or sagging
- Patch repairs that may hide an ongoing problem
- Slates or tiles that have slipped or gone
Tips that help
Nothing here needs a ladder. A few suggestions:
- Book once your offer is accepted
- Share the report with your solicitor
- For a flat, check who is responsible for the roof
- Let us know your exchange date as you book
The Standard Survey includes a follow-up consultation to talk the findings through, and the Premium Survey includes an in-person consultation. If anything in the report is not clear, ask us.
Every so often, check the loft with a torch, keeping to boarded areas. Watch for stains, damp timbers and chinks of daylight. Photos help if you later need a roofer or another survey.
Pre-purchase roof survey in Ightham: what you get
A roof report gives you something solid to take back to the seller or the agent. You can ask about the roof’s history, ask for repairs before completion or rethink the price. What the seller agrees to is up to them, but you will be negotiating from a clear picture rather than a hunch. It can also help you decide whether the purchase is still right for you. We survey flat-roofed extensions and dormers, gutters and downpipes and clay and concrete tiles, and the problems we’re asked to look at most are standing water on a flat extension roof and quick fixes on flashings and valleys.
Being in a small place like Ightham makes no difference to the inspection itself: it just means planning the journey and access beforehand. If there are outbuildings with roofs you want checked, mention them as you book. Buyers and owners of new roofs get the same approach as anywhere. Weekday and weekend visits are both available.
We keep jargon out of it: where something needs attention, it says so plainly, and where it can wait, that’s said too.
- Place
- Ightham (TN15)
- Wider area
- Kent
- Price
- From £150 inc. VAT
- Report
- Written, with photos, emailed to you
- When we survey
- Weekdays and weekends
- Cover
- Professional indemnity and public liability
- Call
- 07833 053749
- Page updated
- 27 October 2026
What a pre-purchase roof survey looks like in Ightham
Where the drone is part of the survey, we check the Drone Safety Map for restrictions before flying. Across Kent, older roofs are frequently handmade clay or peg tiles, and tile-hanging on upper walls is a familiar sight. The county’s older buildings also include oast houses and timber-framed Wealden hall houses. Material and age explain a lot of what turns up on the day, whether the roof is old or brand new.
For landlords with property near Borough Green & Wrotham station, a survey before purchase, or before signing off a new roof, saves surprises once a tenant moves in. With Ightham Mote about 1.5 miles south, the area around Ightham has a long history. Buying a period property here means asking about the roof’s age and repairs, and about any listing or conservation area.
Ightham is about 4 miles east of Sevenoaks, in Kent. In Ightham, as across Kent, every roof gets the same careful survey. Across Kent, we cover Ightham. You can also see our page for Maidstone.
Pre-purchase roof surveys in TN15 work the same way as everywhere else we cover. That includes homes and businesses on The Street, Redwell Lane and Old Lane and the roads around them. If you’re just outside Ightham, we cover Oldbury (1 mile north), Ivy Hatch (1 mile south-west), Sheet Hill (1 mile south-east), Styants Bottom (1 mile north-west) and Yopps Green (1 mile south-east). Within a short drive, we also cover Maidstone (11 miles east), Dartford (12 miles north), Sevenoaks (4 miles west), Royal Tunbridge Wells (10 miles south), Gravesend (11 miles north) and Tonbridge (6 miles south).
Near you in Ightham
We work in homes and buildings around Ivy Hatch Nature Reserve, Wrotham School and The Old House. For rail, the closest station is Borough Green & Wrotham station, roughly 1.5 miles north-east of the centre. Nearby you’ll also find Ightham Court (1.1 miles north) and Beechin Wood Archery Museum (2.3 miles east).
Ightham questions
Do you cover smaller places like Ightham?
Yes, we do. We cover the whole of London and South East England, from towns to the smallest villages. Longer journeys are simply planned in advance.
How do I find out if my home in Ightham is listed?
The council and Historic England’s list are the places to check. Either can affect what roof work is allowed, so it is worth checking before planning any.
Which days do you carry out surveys?
Surveys can be booked for any day of the week: Monday to Friday, Saturdays and Sundays. Let us know which days suit you as you book.
Does the weather affect the survey?
It depends on the weather and the survey. In high wind or heavy rain, a drone can’t fly and access may not be safe, so we’d move the date with you.
Do you need to go inside the property?
Ideally, yes. The loft tells us a lot about the roof, and upstairs windows give useful views. Access is usually arranged through the agent or seller.
Do you survey roofs on blocks of flats?
Yes. A shared roof needs access agreed first, with the building owner or managing agent. Tell us about it when booking and we’ll plan the survey around it.
Do you test for asbestos?
No. We do not sample or test for asbestos. The report may flag materials that could contain asbestos on buildings built or refurbished before 2000, with a recommendation to have a specialist asbestos surveyor check before it is disturbed.
What happens if roof problems are left?
It’s tempting to skip the roof to keep a sale moving. We visit on weekdays and at weekends, and the Premium Survey report arrives the same day, which helps it fit around your exchange date. Around Ightham, older homes frequently have old roof timbers, where water from a failed roof can cause rot if it’s left.
Price depends partly on the package: Basic from £150, Standard from £250 or Premium from £400, all including VAT. The roof’s size, height and access matter as well.
What you get with us
- An independent look at the roof
- Over 5,000 surveys carried out
- Photos and a written report every time
- Prices that include VAT
Read how roof surveys are priced and what we found on two real jobs.
Roof by roof
Natural slate
Older slate roofs often have bitumen felt under them, and very old ones may have none. From inside the roof space, we report what we can see of it.
Gutters and parapets
The rainwater system keeps water off the walls. Leaking joints, sagging lengths and blockages are all noted, along with fascias and soffits.
What we are asked to look at in Ightham
Many roofs have had quick fixes over the years. Bitumen painted over a flashing, mortar where lead should be, or a few tiles that don’t match can be signs that something has leaked before. Our report records them so you can ask the seller what was done and when.
Look out for signs like these:
- Loose pots and cracked flaunching
- Gaps where slates or tiles have come loose
- Gutters that overflow or drip at the joints
- A ridge or slope that dips
If yours is one of the older homes in the streets near Church of St Peter, ask the seller about past roof repairs, because older roofs frequently have patched valleys, replaced slates and reset ridges.
Before booking any roof surveyor
- Do they have a CAA Flyer ID and Operator ID for drone work?
- Which viewpoints they use to see the roof
- Are they insured for the work?
- Whether you can ask questions once you have the report
Surveys for landlords and agents in Ightham
For blocks of flats, a roof survey helps managing agents and residents’ management companies plan ahead. Recommendations are set out in order of urgency where relevant, which helps when budgeting.
With a portfolio of properties, surveys can be booked for more than one address. To discuss a number of properties, phone 07833 053749 or email us.
Places near Ightham
Also in Ightham
How it works
We work from the outside in: first the slopes, edges and gutters from every safe viewpoint, then the loft space where it can be reached. All told, expect between one and two hours at a typical home, and more on a big or complicated roof. Somewhere like Ightham needs a little journey planning: let us know about lanes, gates and parking. The roof is looked at from ground level, from windows, from the loft where there is safe access and from the roof where it is safe.
- Once your offer is accepted, you tell us the address and when you hope to exchange.
- Access to the house and the roof space is agreed beforehand.
- We start outside, looking at the roof from ground level and from vantage points.
- We then look from upstairs windows and inside the loft where it is safe.
- You get a photo-illustrated written report and recommendations before you exchange.
How to prepare
- Move anything stored under the loft hatch
- Have any paperwork from past roof work to hand
- Let us know about parking near the property
Book a survey
If you have photos of the roof, send them over. Take them safely from ground level or a window, and please do not climb up for a closer look. To get started, phone 07833 053749 or send us an email.