Greater London · London and the South East
Pre-purchase roof survey in Mottingham, Greater London
Pre-purchase roof surveys for homes and businesses in Mottingham. More than 5,000 surveys completed across London and South East England.
- Gaps where slates or tiles have come loose
- Standing water on a flat extension roof
- Bitumen or mortar used in place of proper repairs
Pre-purchase roof survey in Mottingham: what you get
Tall, steep or hidden roofs are hard to judge from the street. The Premium Survey adds thermal imaging, plus a drone inspection where it applies, along with a same-day report. Where a flight isn’t possible, because of airspace rules or the weather, we tell you and look from ground level, windows and the loft instead. If you’re worried about blocked or leaking gutters and sagging ridge lines or uneven roof slopes, we can find out what’s behind it.
In a London terrace or conversion, the roof frequently 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 Mottingham, that shapes what can be checked: only the parts we’re given access to and can see safely are inspected. For a flat, the lease typically says who looks after the roof.
If any part of the roof couldn’t be seen safely, we say so in the report. That way, it is clear what was covered and what wasn’t.
- Place
- Mottingham (SE9, SE12, BR1)
- Wider area
- Greater London
- Cost
- From £150 inc. VAT
- Report
- A written report with photos, by email
- Appointments
- Monday to Sunday, daytime
- Cover
- Professional indemnity and public liability
- Call
- 07833 053749
- Last updated
- 27 October 2026
Should I look at the roof myself first?
After strong wind, take a look from the pavement or garden: pieces of tile or slate on the ground, a gap in the ridge or a lifted flashing are all worth noting. Leave anything above ground level to a survey.
A lot can be seen from ground level. Binoculars help you spot slipped slates or tiles, gaps along the ridge and a leaning stack. Please don’t climb up for a closer look.
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. A survey after you’ve moved in tells you the same things, but too late to use them in the purchase. In Mottingham, as in much of London, water from a roof defect can reach a neighbour’s home as easily as yours: a blocked parapet gutter or slipped slate can let water into the flat below or the house next door. Dealing with it early is far less disruptive.
Bigger, taller and commercial roofs take more time to survey, so the price reflects that. You’ll know the figure before booking.
What you get with us
- Satisfaction rate of 98%
- A sub-250g drone, flown with a CAA Flyer ID and Operator ID
- Over 5,000 surveys carried out
- Surveys seven days a week
See what a roof survey costs and what we found on two real jobs.
When you need someone else
Before booking, it is worth knowing what a survey won’t do:
- A valuation or a promise of a lower price
- Walls, floors, services and rooms below the roof
- What’s under the slates, tiles or felt
Not sure which survey suits your roof? You can call 07833 053749 or email us and we will tell you before you book. What our survey covers.
Roofs we survey in Mottingham
- The roof space
- Clay and concrete tiles
- Chimney stacks
- Flat-roofed extensions and dormers
- Gutters and downpipes
- Lead flashings and valleys
- Natural slate
What we do, step by step
Once we’ve finished looking, we write up our findings as a report with photographs, emailed to you. As for time on site, most surveys take between one and two hours at a typical home, rising to roughly 3–4 hours on a commercial building. In a London area like Mottingham, 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. We then look at everything that’s safely in view from the ground, windows, the loft and, where it is safe, the roof itself.
- You get in touch after your offer is agreed, with the address and your target exchange date.
- We arrange access with you, the agent or the seller.
- The roof is inspected from every safe vantage point, inside and out.
- Coverings, ridges, valleys, flashings, chimneys and gutters are checked and photographed.
- You receive a written report with photos and recommendations to read before exchange.
Before the survey
- Keep pets inside or away from the areas we’re looking at
- If the roof is shared, arrange access with whoever manages the building
- Let us know about parking near the property
Book a survey
Surveys can be booked for weekdays, Saturdays or Sundays. To arrange a day that suits you, ring 07833 053749 or send us an email.
Advice
FAQs for Mottingham
Does a conservation area affect roof work in Mottingham?
You can check whether a building is listed on Historic England’s list, and your council can tell you if it’s in a conservation area. Listed building consent is needed for changes that affect a listed building’s special interest, and conservation areas can limit changes of roofing material.
Can you fly a drone over a roof in Mottingham?
The answer turns on the exact location and the conditions on the day. London’s airspace includes flight restriction zones around Heathrow, London City Airport and London Heliport, and restricted areas over Hyde Park, the City of London and the Isle of Dogs. Every London address is checked against them before a flight. Every flight is checked against the Drone Safety Map first, including zones around airports and prisons. A small drone can’t fly safely in strong wind or heavy rain, though the rest of the survey goes ahead either way.
Do you need to go inside the property?
Where possible, yes. The loft tells us a lot about the roof, and views from upper windows help too. Access is usually arranged through the agent or seller.
How soon is the report ready?
Premium reports arrive the same day, Standard reports within 24 to 48 hours and Basic within 48 hours. We send it by email with photos included.
Do you test for asbestos?
No. We don’t sample or test for asbestos. Where a material might contain it, such as old cement sheets on a building from before 2000, the report flags it, with a recommendation to have a specialist asbestos surveyor check before it is disturbed.
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.
Do I need to be at home?
That depends on the survey. Inside the building and in the loft, we need someone to let us in.
How the survey changes by roof type
Natural slate
Natural slate can last 100 years or more, yet the nails that fix it often give out first. When slates start to slip, corroded nails are frequently the reason, and we note how widespread it looks.
Gutters and parapets
Hidden gutters behind parapets send water indoors when they block. We look at their linings and outlets from wherever is safe.
Local roofs and buyers in Mottingham
Alongside Victorian and Edwardian terraces, outer London has a great many interwar semis, often with hipped roofs of clay or concrete tiles. Bay roofs, hip ridges and dormers from later loft conversions are the details that set these houses apart. Each material has its own typical faults, which is what a buyer or the owner of a new roof needs to know about. The wider area around Mottingham has a long history of building, with Eltham Palace about 1.1 miles north-east. If your home is one of the older ones, expect a mix of original materials and later repairs on the roof.
If you live in an older home near Jubilee International Church, ask the seller about past roof repairs, because older roofs frequently have patched valleys, replaced slates and reset ridges. Mottingham is in London, so parking needs planning: let us know about parking bays, permits or a driveway when you book, as a space near the door cannot be promised.
Mottingham is about 1 mile south-west of Eltham, in Greater London. Mottingham is part of the area we cover as part of our work across London and South East England. Across Greater London, we cover Mottingham and the places around it. London is in our area too.
We survey roofs across the SE9, SE12 and BR1 postcode area for pre-purchase roof surveys. If you need a pre-purchase roof survey at a property on Horley Road, Dorset Road and Albert Road or a nearby road, we can survey it. Other places close to Mottingham include Chinbrook (1 mile south-west), Grove Park (1 mile west), Coldharbour (1 mile east), Middle Park (1 mile north) and Horn Park (1 mile north-west). We also work in nearby towns such as London (7 miles north-west), City of Westminster (10 miles north-west), Marylebone (10 miles north-west), Kensington (11 miles north-west), St Pancras (9 miles north-west) and Shoreditch (8 miles north-west).
Near you in Mottingham
Typical jobs here are in homes near Colfe's School, Chinbrook Meadows and Haberdashers' Aske's Knights Academy. Mottingham’s nearest station is Grove Park station, about 0.7 miles west of the centre. Nearby you’ll also find Greenwich Castle (3.5 miles north-west) and Prefab Museum (1.7 miles west). The countryside around Mottingham includes Summer Hill and The Tarn.
Also near Mottingham
Also in Mottingham
When to book a survey in Mottingham
Flat roofs turn up on extensions, dormers, porches and garages. A felt roof often lasts around 15 to 20 years, and ponding, blisters and splits are common signs of age. A buyer can easily miss them, especially when they’re only visible from an upper floor.
Here are some of the things we see often:
- Patch repairs that may hide an ongoing problem
- Roof slopes that look uneven or sagging
- Blocked or leaking gutters
- Old water stains in the roof space
If you let a flat or house near Grove Park station, the roof is worth checking before you add another property to a portfolio or pay a roofer in full.
Questions to ask before booking
- Whether the loft space is looked at, where there is one
- Whether they hold professional indemnity and public liability insurance
- What the survey will not cover
- Whether VAT is added on top