What is a chartered surveyor?
A chartered surveyor is a surveyor who has achieved chartered membership of a professional body by meeting its training, experience and assessment requirements. Members agree to follow the body's rules of conduct and to keep their knowledge up to date.
"Chartered surveyor" describes a professional status, not a type of work. Chartered surveyors work in many fields, including valuation, quantity surveying, land, planning and building surveying. A chartered surveyor whose career has been in commercial valuation may have little day-to-day experience of inspecting homes.
What is a building surveyor?
A building surveyor is a surveyor whose specialism is buildings themselves: how they are built, how they fail and how they are repaired. Building surveyors carry out home surveys, diagnose defects such as cracking and damp, and advise on repairs, alterations, party walls and maintenance.
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Which professional bodies do surveyors belong to?
Professional bodies for surveyors are membership organisations. Surveyors join them and pass their assessments to show they are qualified and experienced in their role. There are three main bodies for surveyors who inspect homes.
| Professional body | Common letters | What it covers |
|---|---|---|
| Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) | AssocRICS, MRICS, FRICS | All fields of surveying, from building surveying and home surveys to valuation and quantity surveying |
| Chartered Institute of Building (CIOB) | MCIOB, FCIOB | Construction and the built environment, including how buildings are put together and maintained |
| Residential Property Surveyors Association (RPSA) | Membership of the association | Surveyors who specialise in inspecting and reporting on residential property |
Each body has its own route to membership, its own assessments and its own rules for members. None of them on its own makes a surveyor better than a member of another; the right choice depends on the surveyor's experience with the home in question.
Do letters after a name make a surveyor the best fit?
No. Letters show that a surveyor has joined a professional body and met its requirements, but not what kind of work they have done since. An MRICS surveyor may specialise in commercial property, valuation or construction costs and rarely inspect a house. An MCIOB or RPSA surveyor may inspect homes every working day.
For a home survey, the questions that matter are:
- How many homes does the surveyor inspect, and how recently?
- Has the surveyor inspected homes of this age and type: period, converted, extended or non-traditional construction such as timber, steel or concrete frame?
- Does the surveyor know the local housing and ground conditions?
- Is the survey one of the recognised RICS Home Survey levels, or another clearly defined report, with its scope set out before booking?
- Will the surveyor talk the findings through after the report?
What is the difference, side by side?
| Chartered surveyor | Building surveyor | |
|---|---|---|
| What the title describes | Professional status (chartered membership) | Area of expertise (buildings) |
| Letters after the name | For example MRICS, FRICS or MCIOB | Depends on the professional body joined |
| Typical work | Any field of surveying | Home surveys, defects, repairs, alterations, party walls |
| Best for a home survey | When the specialism is residential building surveying | When backed by a professional body and regular residential experience |
How do you check a surveyor?
- Check membership of a recognised professional body, such as the RICS, the CIOB or the RPSA, using that body's public directory of members.
- Ask how much of the surveyor's work is residential inspection, and for what types of home.
- Ask what the survey covers and what it does not, and look at a sample report.
- Read recent independent reviews from previous clients.
- Check that the price is based on the property type and size, not its value.
Do you need a structural engineer instead?
Usually not at the start. A building surveyor's survey looks at the whole home. A structural engineer is a specialist brought in when the survey finds a specific structural problem that needs calculations or a repair design.
What a survey can — and cannot — tell you
A building survey provides an informed assessment of the visible condition of a property. Inspections are non-intrusive and limited to areas that are accessible at the time of inspection.
A survey by an experienced residential building surveyor gives a buyer a professional opinion on the home's condition and what to do about it.
- The condition of every visible and accessible part of the home.
- Defects, their likely causes and the repair options, at Level 3.
- Alterations and legal points for the solicitor.
- Further investigations needed, and which specialist to use.
However, there are limitations to what a survey can determine without intrusive investigation.
- Hidden parts of the structure, foundations and buried drains cannot be seen.
- Services are not tested.
- Structural calculations are a structural engineer's work.
Where higher-risk indicators are identified, further specialist or intrusive investigation may be recommended.
Frequently asked questions
Is the RICS the only body for surveyors?
No. The RICS is one of three main professional bodies for surveyors who inspect homes, alongside the Chartered Institute of Building (CIOB) and the Residential Property Surveyors Association (RPSA).
What does MRICS mean?
Member of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors: a surveyor who has achieved chartered status with the RICS. It does not by itself show experience in residential surveys.
What does MCIOB mean?
Member of the Chartered Institute of Building: chartered membership of the CIOB, the professional body for construction and the built environment.
Is an MRICS surveyor always the best choice for a home survey?
Not necessarily. The best fit is a surveyor with regular, recent experience of inspecting homes like the one being bought, whichever recognised body they belong to.
Is every building surveyor chartered?
No. Some are chartered members of the RICS or the CIOB, some hold other grades of membership, and some belong to the RPSA.
