Residential Projects

The role of a Quantity Surveyor is not confined to the construction industry or large value projects. The same principles apply to general building works no matter what their size. Most people cannot afford to exceed their budget and, if things don’t go to plan, will not have a sympathetic bank or parent company to bail them out. The impact the role of a Quantity Surveyor can have on a project in managing the costs is therefore much more significant and vital.

Our experience of the processes involved could result in you saving thousands of pounds on your project. Using the right process of approaching, selecting and negotiating with builders, and then helping you set up your contract, we can address all the points that normally lead to additional expenditure and the potential for conflict with a builder. This will give you a defined budget, a lot less stress on your project and above all else, provide your bank with confidence that you are in control of the project finances.

We are happy to undertake the following residential projects:

• Single or double storey extensions
• New Garages
• Driveway or landscaping works
• Boundary wall works
• Loft Conversions
• House alterations
• New Builds, including Self Builds
• Change of property use (e.g. shop unit to residential)

We can offer the following services in respect of the above:

Production of an activity schedules
This document will list and describe the extent of all the building works required to complete the project, along with the estimated cost. This document would be highly adequate to obtain quotations from potential builders and would also be acceptable for submission to mortgage lenders for use with Self Build Projects.

Production of a Bill of Quantities
As above but more detailed and defining the actual quantities of work, this document would enable you to accurately cost your scheme and enable refinement of areas that are potentially high in value. This document would also be helpful for evaluating any additional works that may arise on the project.

Assistance with selecting your builder/trades people
We can provide support and help in issuing enquiry documents to obtain quotes for the work, assessing the quotations to ensure all the work is correctly priced and then negotiating with prospective builders before helping you to agree the final price for work. The selection of prospective builders would be done in consultation with you at all stages.

Assistance in setting up a contract
We can draft out a suitable contract for the works with your selected builder and ensure that all key items such as the definition of the works, payment terms and other points of significance for the works are covered and agreed before any works are undertaken.

Assistance in monitoring and agreeing payments to your builder
There are several ways to approach this and with our advice, we can help you select the most suitable method for you. Whether it is monthly, fortnightly or milestone payments, we can help you monitor and ensure that the works are progressed at a reasonable speed and that you don’t end up paying too much too soon!

Assistance in monitoring and agreeing additional works
It’s not often that a building project does not have at least some element of change during the course of the works. Our experience in identifying monitoring, evaluating, negotiating and agreeing any variations with your builder will ensure that you don’t pay more than you should. We will also help you to agree the final amount due and ensure that all works are completed to an acceptable standard before the final payment is made.