Greater London · London and the South East
Pre-Purchase Roof Survey in Picketts Lock
We take a careful look at the roof at your property in Picketts Lock, with photos and a written report.
- Gutters that overflow or drip at the joints
- Gaps where slates or tiles have come loose
- Bitumen or mortar used in place of proper repairs
Pre-purchase roof survey in Picketts Lock: what you get
If you’re buying a flat, the roof may well be shared. The lease decides who looks after the roof, and that is frequently not the individual flat owner, with costs frequently passed on through the service charge. We check as much of the roof as access safely allows, and the report gives you clear points to raise with your solicitor or the managing agent. If the building has a flat roof, we check that too where access allows. Common reasons to book are gaps where slates or tiles have come loose and loose pots and cracked flaunching, across lead flashings and valleys, clay and concrete tiles and natural slate.
Homes across London range from Victorian and Edwardian terraces to interwar semis, post-war blocks and new developments, so a property in Picketts Lock might be any of these. Whether the roof is old or newly laid, the problem areas depend on how and when the building went up. Slates, hidden valley gutters, parapets and flat roofs over back additions all need checking in their own way.
Findings are set out part by part, from the coverings down to the gutters, with a note and a photo for each point. You will see the good as well as the bad.
- Where
- Picketts Lock (N9, E4, N18)
- Region
- Greater London
- Cost
- From £150 inc. VAT
- Your report
- Written, with photos, emailed to you
- Appointments
- Weekdays, Saturdays and Sundays
- Insurance
- Professional indemnity and public liability
- Phone
- 07833 053749
- Page updated
- 27 October 2026
Should I look at the roof myself first?
Inside, the loft is a good place to look, with care. Use a torch and stay on the joists or boards, and look for staining, damp timber or daylight coming through.
The one thing to avoid is getting up close. Roofs are fragile and slippery, and a fall can be serious. That part is for a survey, using safe viewpoints and a drone where it applies.
How it works
We photograph the roof as we go, so you can see in the report what we found and where. Close-ups come from the safest viewpoint available. A typical visit 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 converted houses and mansion blocks, the loft hatch is frequently on a shared landing. Where that is the case, access needs agreeing with whoever controls that landing. Everything else is planned around the building, not the postcode.
- After your offer is agreed, you book and share your timetable.
- 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.
- Inside, we check the loft space and look at the roof from windows.
- The report is emailed with photos and recommendations, ready to use before exchange.
Getting ready for the survey
- Clear the way to the loft hatch
- Tell us where we can park nearby
- Unlock side gates and any roof access doors
Getting a price
You can call us seven days a week, including Saturdays and Sundays. For a price or to book, phone 07833 053749 or use the contact form.
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Rented homes, blocks and businesses
An agent can book and manage the survey for a landlord. Access is agreed with the tenant ahead of time.
We survey roofs for landlords and agents as well as householders. The report gives you a dated record of the roof, with photographs.
Buying a home or a new roof in Picketts Lock
The wider area around Picketts Lock has a long history of building, with Bruce Castle about 2.6 miles south-west. Older roofs in the wider area can hide decades of patch repairs, so the detail matters. Alongside Victorian and Edwardian terraces, outer London has a great many interwar semis, frequently with hipped roofs of clay or concrete tiles. On a semi of that age, the small roofs over the bays, the hip tiles and any later dormer each need their own look. Whether you are buying or checking new roofing work, knowing the materials helps make sense of what the inspection finds.
If your house is among the older ones in the streets near All Saints' Church, the roof may have had decades of patch repairs, and the survey shows where they are. For a London address like Picketts Lock, it is useful to know about controlled parking before the day, along with any off-street space.
Picketts Lock is about 1 mile west of Chingford, in Greater London. We cover Picketts Lock and the rest of Greater London, as part of our work across London and the South East. Our Greater London coverage includes Picketts Lock and the places around it. There is also a page for London.
We work across N9, E4 and N18 for pre-purchase roof surveys. If you need a pre-purchase roof survey at a property on Ardra Road, Goodwin Road and Hennessy Road or a nearby road, we can help. Main roads around Picketts Lock include the A1037, which makes travel easy. If you’re just outside Picketts Lock, we cover Chingford Mount (1 mile south-east), South Chingford (1 mile south), Chingford (1 mile east), Edmonton (1 mile west) and Ponders End (1 mile north-west). Within a short drive, we also cover London (9 miles south), City of Westminster (9 miles south-west), Marylebone (9 miles south-west), Kensington (11 miles south-west), St Pancras (8 miles south-west) and Shoreditch (7 miles south).
Local landmarks in Picketts Lock
Around Picketts Lock, our work takes us to homes and buildings near The King's Ford pub, Nightingale Academy and Pymmes Park and the streets around them. The nearest railway station is Ponders End station, roughly 1.2 miles north of the centre. Nearby you’ll also find North Middlesex University Hospital (2 miles south-west) and The Epping Forest Museum (2.2 miles east). For a walk, there’s Pole Hill and Highams Park Lake.
How the survey changes by roof type
Chimney stacks
Our chimney check is a visual one, and it is not a flue or gas safety check. We will say if the flue needs a specialist.
Lead flashings and valleys
Flashings close the gaps at chimneys, walls and abutments. We check whether they’ve lifted, split or been replaced with mortar or bitumen.
What this survey can’t tell you
It’s a careful look at the roof, not the whole story. The main limits are:
- Defects hidden under coverings or inside walls without opening up
- A valuation or a promise of a lower price
- Structural calculations (that is a structural engineer’s job)
Not sure which survey suits your roof? You can call 07833 053749 or send us an email and we’ll tell you before booking. What a survey covers and does not.
Roofs we survey in Picketts Lock
- Gutters and downpipes
- Natural slate
- The roof space
- Clay and concrete tiles
- Flat-roofed extensions and dormers
- Chimney stacks
- Lead flashings and valleys
Your questions about pre-purchase roof surveys in Picketts Lock
Is drone flying allowed in Picketts Lock?
It depends on the exact address and the weather 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. Each address is checked against all of them before the drone goes up. Before any flight, we check the Drone Safety Map for airspace restrictions. A small drone cannot fly safely in strong wind or heavy rain, and the rest of the survey doesn’t depend on the drone.
Will parking be an issue for a roof survey in Picketts Lock?
It depends on the street. If Picketts Lock has controlled parking where you are, a visitor permit is the easiest answer, and a driveway is even better.
Which days do you carry out surveys?
Surveys run on weekdays and at weekends. To find a day that suits you, call 07833 053749 or use the contact form.
Can you survey a shared roof?
Yes, once whoever controls the roof agrees access. We check the parts we’re given access to.
Is a roof survey worth having alongside a home survey?
That depends on how much you want to know about the roof. Home surveys sometimes suggest a closer look at the roof, and our survey gives you that closer look. It isn’t a replacement for a RICS survey.
Can you tell me if my roof has asbestos?
No. Asbestos surveys and testing are not part of what we do. We flag materials that could contain asbestos, such as cement sheets or soffits on pre-2000 buildings and suggest a specialist asbestos surveyor checks them before any work.
Will you need to get into the loft?
Ideally, yes. We look in the roof space where there is safe access, and upstairs windows give useful views. The agent or seller can arrange entry.
Signs you need a pre-purchase roof survey in Picketts Lock
A chimney stack stands out in the wind and rain. Mortar erodes, the flaunching around the pots cracks and the flashings work loose. A stack may be shared with the neighbours, which matters if work is needed.
Things that often lead to a survey include:
- Quick fixes on flashings and valleys
- Lead that has worked loose at a wall or chimney
- Signs of past leaks inside the loft
- Gutters that overflow or drip at the joints
If you own a rental within reach of Ponders End station, it is worth knowing a roof’s condition before you buy it, or before you sign off new roofing work on it.
Questions to ask before you book
- Whether you can ask questions once you have the report
- Whether the inside of the roof is included
- What experience they bring
- How long the report takes to arrive