Surrey · London and the South East
St John's Pre-Purchase Roof Survey
We take a careful look at the roof at your property in St John's, with photos and a written report.
- Gaps where slates or tiles have come loose
- Signs of past leaks inside the loft
- Quick fixes on flashings and valleys
About our pre-purchase roof survey in St John's
The roof is one of the most expensive parts of a home to repair, and one of the hardest for a buyer to see. Our pre-purchase roof survey gives you a close look at it before you are committed. We look at the slates or tiles, the ridges and valleys, the flashings, the chimneys and the gutters, plus the loft where there’s safe access. The findings come in a written report with photos. We’re often asked to look into flashings that have lifted or split and cracked flaunching or crumbling chimney pointing, across natural slate, clay and concrete tiles and gutters and downpipes.
Smaller places like St John's often have bungalows and cottages as well as houses, many of them extended or given dormers over the years. Low roofs are easier to see from ground level, but dormer cheeks, valleys and flat-roofed additions still need close attention. That applies whether you’re buying in St John's or checking a new roof there. Lead around a dormer and the edges of a flat roof are common places for snags and wear alike.
After the visit, you get a written report with photos, emailed to you. It sets out the condition of the roof, any defects and our written recommendations.
- Where
- St John's (GU21, GU22)
- Wider area
- Surrey
- Price
- From £150 inc. VAT
- Your report
- Written, with photos, emailed to you
- Survey days
- Monday to Sunday, daytime
- Insurance
- PI and public liability insurance
- Phone
- 07833 053749
- Last updated
- 27 October 2026
What we do, step by step
We don’t take risks to get a closer look. We inspect everything that’s safely in view, and if part of the roof cannot be seen, the report says so. Most visits take roughly 1–2 hours at the house you’re buying, depending on its size and how much of the roof can be seen. Some parts of a survey depend on the weather, so a visit to St John's is booked with the forecast in mind: the parts that need calm, dry weather are planned around it.
- Once your offer has been accepted, you book and give us the address and your timescale.
- Access is arranged through you, the agent or the seller.
- We look at the roof from ground level, from windows, from the roof space and from the roof where safe.
- Each part of the roof is examined and photographed.
- We email a photo-illustrated written report and recommendations, ready for you to use before exchange.
Before we arrive
- For a flat or shared roof, check access with the building owner or managing agent
- Keep pets in another room
- Leave a clear route to the loft
Arrange a survey
Most bookings start with a short call: ring 07833 053749 or drop us an email and we will ask a few questions about the roof. You will have a price before anything is arranged.
Read more
What we can’t see
It is a careful look at the roof, not the whole story. Its limits include:
- How a seller will respond, or what the house is worth
- Confirmation of asbestos in cement sheets or soffits
- Anything beyond the roof, which a full home survey covers
If you are not sure which survey you need, phone 07833 053749 or drop us an email and we’ll give you a straight answer. What our survey covers.
What we look at
- Chimney stacks
- Lead flashings and valleys
- Natural slate
- Clay and concrete tiles
- Gutters and downpipes
- Flat-roofed extensions and dormers
- The roof space
Roof by roof
Chimney stacks
Leaning stacks, loose pots and eroded mortar are common findings. We photograph them so you can raise them before exchange.
Natural slate
Older slate roofs often have bitumen felt under them, and very old ones may have none. Where we can see it from the loft, we say what condition it is in.
Also near St John's
Also in St John's
What a pre-purchase roof survey looks like in St John's
Older buildings may be listed or sit in a conservation area. Historic England’s list shows listed buildings, and the council can say whether a street is in a conservation area. In either case, a change of roofing material may need consent. Fairoaks Airport is about 3 miles from St John's. If the drone is used for your survey, the Drone Safety Map is checked for restrictions first.
If you live in an older home near St John's Church, ask the seller about past roof repairs, because older roofs often have patched valleys, replaced slates and reset ridges. If you own a rental within reach of Woking station, a survey before purchase, or before signing off a new roof, saves surprises once a tenant moves in.
St John's is about 1 mile west of Woking, in Surrey. St John's is part of the area we cover across London and South East England. We cover towns and villages across Surrey, large and small.
We work across GU21 and GU22 for pre-purchase roof surveys and the streets around it. If you need a pre-purchase roof survey at a property on Pond Road, Copse Road and Raglan Road or anywhere close by, we can survey it. St John's is on the A324, which makes it simple to reach. Other places close to St John's include Goldsworth Park (1 mile north-east), Woking (1 mile east), Westfield (2 miles south-east), Horsell (2 miles north-east) and Mimbridge (2 miles north). Within a short drive, we also cover Guildford (5 miles south), Camberley (6 miles west), Epsom (14 miles east), Farnham (11 miles south-west), Ewell (15 miles east) and Egham (8 miles north).
What’s near St John's
Locally, jobs take us to homes and businesses close to Hoe Valley School, The Oaktree School and Royal Oak pub. The closest station to St John's is Woking station, roughly 1.6 miles east. A little further out are Brookwood Hospital (1 mile west) and The Peacocks (1.6 miles east). For a walk, there’s Brookwood Lye.
Should I look at the roof myself first?
Fresh stains on ceilings or walls after rain are worth noting. Take a photo and write down when you saw it, which helps when we check the roof.
Your own check is a good start, but it isn’t a survey. You won’t see flashings, valleys or the backs of chimneys properly from the ground, and those are details a survey looks at closely.
Why act early in St John's
Plenty of buyers go ahead anyway, but with their eyes open. The report shows what needs doing first, so you can plan work before small faults get bigger. In a smaller place like St John's, wherever a roof is exposed, a loose ridge or flashing doesn’t stay loose for long. Each storm lifts it a little further.
Price depends partly on the package: from £150 for Basic, £250 for Standard and £400 for Premium, including VAT. Size, height and access can affect the price too.
Why choose Independent Roof Survey in St John's
- 20+ years’ experience
- Independent findings on the roof’s condition
- Covered by professional indemnity and public liability insurance
- Plain-English reports with photos
FAQs for St John's
Is St John's within the area you cover?
Yes, St John's is on our map. Villages and rural addresses get the same survey as a town house.
Does a conservation area affect roof work in St John's?
Check Historic England’s online list first, then ask the council about conservation areas and any Article 4 direction. It matters most if you’re planning to re-roof in a different material.
Is this an asbestos survey?
No. Asbestos surveys and sampling are not something we do. 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.
Can I use the report to negotiate on price?
Yes. You might ask for work to be done, ask questions or ask for a change to the price. The outcome is between you and the seller.
What insurance do you have?
Every survey is covered by professional indemnity and public liability insurance.
Do I have to be there for the survey?
Not always. An outside-only look can be arranged beforehand, but the loft and any rooms with damp need someone to let us in.
Do you survey roofs on blocks of flats?
Yes, as long as access is agreed. Roofs over flats are often shared, so we need permission from whoever owns or manages the building. We can only inspect what we’re given access to.
Before and after the survey
Here are a few things we’d tell any owner, before and after a survey:
- Ask who repairs the roof under the lease
- Do not leave it until just before exchange
- Ask the agent to make sure the loft hatch can be opened
- Notice patches of new decoration in top-floor rooms
After you move in, keep the report somewhere safe. Work through the urgent items before anything else, and keep the photographs to compare against later. Premium comes with a follow-up after 12 months.
Keep the loft ventilated. Condensation in a roof space can look like a leak and can damage timbers over time. Avoid packing insulation into the eaves so tightly that air can’t flow.