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i•••••@••••.com

Richmond, Surrey

(17)
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‘19 Certificate of Excellence, 2019

About

Samuels is an independent firm based in Richmond, Surrey who provides property valuation and building survey services throughout London. We offer comprehensive services and professional advice to all our clients; including private buyers, house owners and property developers.

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7 hires on Bark

Reviews (17)

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5/5

17 customer reviews

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7 December 2019

Really happy with the service they provided. The valuation was done quicker than I expected. Richard Jackaman is a man of his word. His was available every time I needed him. More...

Reviewed on Google Maps

28 November 2019

Richard has been a fantastic surveyor. He is very thorough and he happily went through the survey with us to explain. He is very knowledgable and helpful. We exchanged numerous emails and had phone calls and he never hesitated to assist. I would strongly recommend him to anyone looking for a thorough surveyor and a detailed survey. Thanks again Richard for your help! More...

Reviewed on Google Maps

6 November 2019

Richard Jackaman undertook a valuation of my flat. He was punctual, polite, professional and very helpful. He carried out a thorough inspection, was responsive to my questions, explained the local property market and changes in values over time, showed me comparable flats and their current market values. He delivered a clear, concise report within a week. I would definitely recommend his services. More...

Reviewed on Google Maps

27 October 2019

First rate service - good communication and very personable. Glad we chose Richard!

Reviewed on Google Maps

7 September 2019

I am so glad I came across Samuels Surveyors and chose them as my surveyors. They carried out a full building survey at very short notice. The published report was very professional, thorough and importantly -- easy to read and understand. From the report, it is clear that Samuels Surveyors have a very keen eye for detail and are very meticulous. I would highly recommend Samuels to anyone in need of a survey or valuation. I would happily recommend them to friends and family and would use them in the future if needed. More...

Reviewed on Google Maps

7 September 2019

Richard is a very honest, straightforward surveyor who will give you genuine honest advice - precisely what you want from a surveyor! He is happy to chat to you about the property as well to go over any queries you have about the survey. Very thorough and attentive. Best of all, incredibly competitively priced!In short, everything you want from a surveyor. I wouldn't go with anyone else More...

Reviewed on Google Maps

22 August 2019

I needed a surveyor at very short notice in order to continue with scheduled work. I received excellent service and advice from a dedicated surveyor who helped me throughout the process. I highly recommend Samuels Surveyors. More...

Reviewed on Google Maps

15 August 2019

Very easy to work with and supported us to get our party wall agreement with LBRUT.

Reviewed on Google Maps

8 August 2019

We hired Samuels Surveyors to conduct and provide us with a full Building Survey Report and Valuation. Richard provided a comprehensive, easy to understand report with estimated costings in relation to work needed on the property. Richard was also very helpful in answering our follow-up questions. Would highly recommend! More...

Reviewed on Google Maps

8 August 2019

Richard produced a very comprehensive and helpful survey.

Reviewed on Google Maps

30 July 2019

Helpful and prompt service from Samuels Surveyors - would recommend!

Reviewed on Google Maps

25 July 2019

I hired the services of Samuels Surveyors and Valuers for one of my clients who had a party wall requirement. Richard was proactive and professional and my client was delighted with the result. I highly recommend the services of Richard and his firm. More...

Reviewed on Google Maps

16 April 2018

I contacted Samuels Surveyors as I was in the process of purchasing a property which whilst built in 1960, had undergone extensive alterations and extensions. I spoke to Richard who was very approachable and informative - discussed the various merits of a homebuyers report and a buildings survey based on what he had seen in the estate agents details, and I proceeded with a buildings survey and reinstatement cost.

Richard quickly made arrangements with the estate agents for access to the property, and promptly came back following that with both reports in under a week, even with Easter weekend in that time period. He also gave me an initial phonecall prior to that to run through the key points so I was aware of them.

The reports themselves were well laid out and easy to understand, as well as including the level of details required. He identified a couple of key points to address with the vendor which I'm now in the process of doing.

Overall, I'm very happy with the service received from Samuels Surveyors and would recommend them.
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31 December 2017

I would highly recommend Richard Jackaman from Samuels Surveyors. He was easy to contact and talk things through with. He carried out the survey and made the report and valuation swiftly

21 October 2017

Very professional, they bent over backwards to help us resolve a dispute with our neighbour.

21 October 2017

We again instructed Richard to undertake a planning application to drop the kerb outside the front of the house to provide off street parking. He was basically dealt with the Local Council and Highways Authority and got our planning permission. His is very approachable and came to the house at any time to help with further applications . We would not hesitate to recommend him and we would also use is services again. More...

21 October 2017

We instructed Richard to undertake a homebuyers survey of a property we purchased. He was very easy to deal with and was willing to go out of his way to help us understand the issues in the from the report. His is very approachable and his advise and explanation in person or over the phone made it simple for us to understand . We would not hesitate to recommend him and we would also use is services again. More...

Q&As

What is appealing about my job in the variety of work I undertake from lease extensions to party wall awards.

I worked for corporates and independent surveyors and whilst I enjoyed it, I felt it was time to set up on my own as a general practise surveyor.

With over 10 years’ experience of property valuation in Hampshire, Surrey and London we have forged extensive connections in the real estate and construction industries and are proud to claim no affiliations with banks or building societies. We enjoy focusing solely on our clients building surveying needs and requirements, working compatibly alongside other industry professionals.
I am a RICS Registered Valuer and also an Associate of the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors.
I have become a member of the Pyramus & Thisbe Club which is a members club for Party Wall Surveyors.

Services

The Party Wall etc Act 1996 made it compulsory for building owners to serve notices on their neighbours (adjoining owners) for any works which would take place on or affect the party wall of the properties. The notice that needs to be served is known as a party wall notice and depending on the scope of the work there are several types of notice that may be necessary.

If you are looking to undertake building works such as: a single storey extension, loft or roof extension or basement conversion then you may need to serve a party wall notice on your neighbours. The 3 types of notices that need to be served are: Section 6: Notice for excavations within 3 or 6 meters, Section 3: notice cutting into a party wall and Section 1: Notice for building a wall adjacent to or astride a boundary.

Making sure you serve the right notices to your neighbours is essential in order to begin building works on schedule and avoid costly delays. At Samuels we are trained party wall surveyors and can assist you in all aspects from notices and schedules of condition to drawing up party wall agreements and awards.

Another common situation that building owners face is when a neighbour serves a party wall notice which gives 2 weeks to appoint a surveyor. At this stage it’s important to pick a party wall surveyor who will work on your behalf but will still have to be impartial as arbitrators. If you fail to appoint your own surveyor your neighbour can appoint a surveyor on your behalf.

Party walls are complicated and in order to ensure you are complying with the rules of the Act it is important to appoint party wall surveyors who understand the full rules governing the Act. At Samuels we have over 10 years’ of experience providing party wall agreements and serving awards and can give you the professional advice you need.

Residential property surveys are an essential part of buying a home. Whether you are buying a brand new home straight off plan or a listed property; getting the right property survey will help to make sure any potential problems can be investigated prior to purchase. There are three different types of residential property survey available and below we’ll walk you through these.

RICS Condition Report

The Condition Report is the most basic property survey you can get. Only really for those looking to buy a relatively new property this report gives an overview of the property’s condition and highlights any significant issues but doesn’t go into any detail. A traffic light system is used to show the condition of the property.

RICS HomeBuyer’s Report

This is generally the most popular type of survey and the standard choice for properties which are in a reasonable condition. The report will highlight problems such as damp and subsidence as well as including advice on necessary repairs and ongoing maintenance. For most buyers this report will be the best option and will highlight any potential issues that may need further investigation.

RICS building survey

The most comprehensive and thorough property survey you can get, the RICS building survey is a great option for older properties. If you are planning on doing major work to a property then a building survey is also a good option. A building survey gives a comprehensive analysis of the structure and condition of the property and advises on repairs and maintenance.

At Samuels we are RICS chartered surveyors and have over 10 years’ experience providing professional property surveys. Our residential surveyors can offer a full range of property surveys and valuations to customers in Richmond, Surrey and East London.

At Samuels we have over 10 years’ experience providing a property valuation service and are RICS chartered surveyors. Based in Richmond we cover the whole of Surrey as well as East and Central London. Whether you need a property valuation for accounting purposes, capital gain tax, insurance purposes or sale or purchase, at Samuels we can help.

Some of the areas of property valuations we cover are:

Valuation for purchase
Valuation for sale
Insurance valuation
Valuation for accounting purposes
Valuation for Capital Gain Tax
Valuations for Inheritance Tax
Expert Witness Valuations

Whether you are looking for a property valuation or need a comprehensive building survey at Samuels we can provide the service you’re looking for. We focus on giving our clients market leading advice that goes far beyond simply reporting a value. Our goal is to provide our clients with the best independent advice to help support their decisions.

Lease extensions and freehold enfranchisement can be a complex field and the associated claims have their own challenges. There are three categories of claim that leaseholders can use to either acquire freehold or obtain a lease extension. At Samuels we’ve got the experience needed to deal with all types of lease extensions and freehold enfranchisement.

For those that own a house under leasehold they should be able to acquire the freehold by virtue of the Leasehold Reform Act 1967. This process is known as freehold enfranchisement and involves purchasing the freehold title of the property with your co-lessees thereby owning a share of the freehold of the building. At Samuels we can provide a valuation of the premium payable for a freehold enfranchisement.

Under the same act the rights to obtain freehold of a block of flats were given to leaseholders. For larger blocks of flats these claims can be extremely complicated as different owners may have leases of varying lengths. These claims are known as collective enfranchisement claims and will require expert advice and guidance which is where we can help.

For those looking to obtain a lease extension then their statutory right is contained in the Leasehold Reform Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 (as amended) and this sets out the procedures for a flat tenant to claim this right. Under the act qualifying tenants have the right to extend their lease by 90 years, paying no further ground rent.

If you own the leasehold of a flat, and your lease is getting shorter, (particularly if it is under, or approaching, eighty years unexpired), to protect the value of your property, you should consider whether you qualify for extending the lease by 90 years (over and above the remaining term of your lease) at a ‘peppercorn’ ground rent.

A Specific Defect Report is used to identify and concentrate on an area of concern that has either been noticed by the owner of a property or been brought up as part of a survey. The report is used to investigate a failing in the structure of a building such as: cracking and distortion of walls, unevenness in floors and damp or rotting timbers.

Our surveyors can carry out a Specific Defect Report for customers throughout Surrey and London and help highlight any potential problems that may exist with a property. The report includes a detailed analysis of the issue, specification for repair and estimated costs for the work.

While the initial inspection may be sufficient for our surveyors to be reasonably certain of the cause and significance of a defect, in some cases further investigation may be needed. This may include: some opening-up of the structure, removal of finishes, uncovering of floors and lifting up floorboards. These investigations can be arranged and supervised by our surveyors and we’d encourage either the owner or prospective buyer to attend the property to get a clear indication of the problem.

Some of the common defects we inspect include:

Cracks and wall distortions
Dampness in buildings
Defects from extension or conversion
Chimney defects
Our Specific Defect Reports can either focus on individual parts of the building’s structure or can be more general to look at issues such as condition of mortar pointing, roof coverings and damp or timber defects. As well as highlighting potential costs for repair work at Samuels we can supervise any repair work on behalf of the property owner.

Property owners often neglect to calculate the actual rebuilding cost when advising their insurance company of the total sum needed for their building’s insurance. At Samuels we can help by calculating the reinstatement cost of your property. As RICS registered valuers we can assess your property and provide an accurate Insurance Reinstatement Valuation for owners of residential properties.

Our valuers calculate the reinstatement costs using the external floor area of the existing building which includes fixtures, fittings, external buildings, fences and driveways. The value is then calculated using the latest construction costs provided by the Building Cost Information Service (BCIS) as well as information from the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors (RICS).

In order to ensure that your property is adequately insured a new Insurance Reinstatement Valuation should be carried out every two to three years. Ensuring you have the right value for rebuilding costs will mean that you won’t be left short by your insurance company if you need to make a claim. It will also help to keep your premiums lower as you’ll only be insuring your property for the actual reinstatement costs.

Make sure your home has the right level of cover by getting a professional Insurance Reinstatement Valuation for your property. At Samuels our building surveyors and valuers can help you get the best advice.

The function of a Schedule of Condition is normally to record the condition of a property and it can take many forms including verbal description, photographs, as written documentation. A Schedule of Condition provides a basis for negotiation for any sums payable by a tenant at the end of a term to settle a landlord’s claim for damages for dilapidations.

A Schedule of Condition is normally prepared for legal or contractual reasons and they can be prepared for residential or commercial buildings. As well as being used for leases there are a variety of other instances where a Schedule of Condition should be prepared that include construction and party walls.

For building and refurbishment work that is going to take place on the party wall then a Schedule of Condition can be used as evidence of the condition of the neighbouring property prior to work being carried out. This will help prevent against potential claims from neighbours who may only notice defects in their property once construction begins.

At Samuels we can help prepare and set out a Schedule of Condition for all types of property for leases, construction and party wall agreements. These can then be used as a benchmark which will help assess the condition of a property either after works are completed or at the end of a tenancy.

A Schedule of Condition may include:

Details of the location and property being assessed
General description of the construction of the property
Time, date and weather conditions
Aspects included in the inspection
Drawings of the property
A written schedule setting out the location, nature and condition
Photographs

Planned Maintenance is a way of identifying internal and external repairs of blocks of flats and converted properties in advance. This is done through surveying the properties to identify and address issues and areas for repair. By using a planned maintenance programme the disruption can be kept to a minimum for lease and freeholders in the building.

We can provide a specification of works based on the results of our survey and this specification can then be sent to contractors for tender to get quotes for the costs of carrying out the works. As well as preparing the specification we can also survey the work and make sure it is carried out in line with the building specification.

Where extensive work may be required we can provide a 5 year planned maintenance programme to help building owners budget for future works more easily. This allows service charge projections to be calculated so that sinking funds can be accurately set up to even out those large payments for extensive building work.

From refurbishment works such as replacing kitchens and bathrooms and upgrading windows and doors to maintenance such as roofing repairs, rewiring and heating system servicing, we can plan out any maintenance and help identify what works need doing in your building. At Samuels we have over 10 years’ experience providing our customers with a top class service. We are RICS registered surveyors and valuers and offer a full range of services.

Snagging lists are the result of a snagging survey and are used to identify any defects or repairs that need to be made to a new build property or a property following refurbishment work. The goal of a snagging survey is to pick up everything from minor issues such as a door not shutting properly right through to major structural problems. Most commonly used for new build properties, snagging surveys are should be carried out between building work being finished and your legal completion date.

During a snagging survey the property is inspected internally and externally covering details such as walls, roof, gutters, downpipe, doors, windows, fixtures, fittings, showers, baths, skirting, walls, ceilings and joinery. After the survey, our surveyors will then complete a snagging list of any repairs that need to be made which will then be passed over to the developer of the property. Once the repairs have been carried out a second inspection will be conducted to confirm that the repairs have been carried out to a satisfactory standard.

At Samuels we can undertake all types of snagging survey for new build and existing properties. While most developers will allow a snagging inspection to be carried out prior to completion some developers won’t. Technically a snagging survey can be carried out at any time during the first two years of living in a new build property but we’d always recommend that this is completed as soon as possible after moving in.

As some defects may take time to appear during the first two years of owning a new build any defects should be noted down on a snagging list and provided to your developer during this period. If you’re looking to get a snagging survey carried out in Surrey or London then get in touch with Samuels.
Snagging lists are the result of a snagging survey and are used to identify any defects or repairs that need to be made to a new build property or a property following refurbishment work. The goal of a snagging survey is to pick up everything from minor issues such as a door not shutting properly right through to major structural problems. Most commonly used for new build properties, snagging surveys are should be carried out between building work being finished and your legal completion date.

A Schedule of Dilapidation is set up to record any damage that has occurred during the lease of a property to a tenant. The purpose of the Schedule of Dilapidation is to identify breaches of covenant that usually relate to: disrepair, decoration and reinstatement. This is to ensure that the property is handed back to the landlord in the condition that is set out in the lease.

At Samuels our surveyors can inspect the property and produce a report that reflects the terms of the lease and interpretation of lease and consideration to the character, nature, type and use of the building. The Schedule of Dilapidation should include any damage to services including drainage but at the same time should not be used to improve the property or go beyond the requirements of the lease.

It can be a good idea to get a Schedule of Dilapidations report carried out prior to the end of a tenancy to give the tenants the opportunity to complete any repairs or work necessary prior to vacating the property. If a Schedule of Dilapidation is completed after the tenancy then it can be used to support a landlord’s claim for compensation for any repairs that are needed that fall under the remit of the lease.

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