The cost of a party wall surveyor depends on the work you are doing, how many neighbours are affected and whether your neighbours agree to one surveyor or appoint their own. In most cases the building owner, the person having the work done, pays the reasonable fees of every surveyor involved, including the neighbour’s. The cheapest outcome is usually written consent from your neighbours or a single agreed surveyor acting for everyone.
This guide explains who pays, what drives the fee, what the fee covers and how to keep the cost down. It applies to work in England and Wales under the Party Wall etc. Act 1996.
Who pays the party wall surveyor’s fees?
The building owner normally pays, because the work is being done for their benefit. That includes:
- their own surveyor’s fees
- the adjoining owner’s surveyor’s reasonable fees, where the neighbour appoints their own surveyor
- a third surveyor’s fees, if one is needed to settle a disagreement
The surveyors decide who pays as part of the party wall award. Costs can be shared differently where, for example, the work also benefits the neighbour or repairs a defect in the wall. If you think the fees in an award are unreasonable, you can appeal to the county court within 14 days of the award being served.
What affects the cost of a party wall surveyor?
- How your neighbours respond. If they consent in writing, no award is needed and the cost is limited to preparing and serving notice. If they dissent, an award is needed.
- One surveyor or two. A single agreed surveyor acting for both owners costs less than two surveyors, one for each side.
- How many neighbours are affected. Each adjoining owner needs notice, and each who dissents needs an award, so a terraced house with neighbours on both sides costs more than a detached one.
- The type and scale of work. Cutting in a steel beam for a loft conversion is simpler than a basement excavation or a new building next to an existing one.
- The drawings and information. Complete structural drawings and calculations from the start avoid delays and extra correspondence.
- Disputes. A third surveyor, a disagreement between surveyors or a later damage claim all add cost.
What does the fee cover?
Depending on how far the matter goes, a party wall surveyor typically:
- checks whether the work needs notice under the Act, and which type
- prepares and serves the notices on each adjoining owner
- deals with the neighbours’ responses and, where needed, their surveyors
- inspects the neighbouring property and prepares a schedule of condition, with photographs
- reviews the drawings and agrees how the work will be carried out
- makes and serves the party wall award
- where needed, inspects again after the work to check for damage
Ask what is included before you appoint a surveyor. Some quotes include the schedule of condition and a final inspection; others charge them separately.
Fixed fee or hourly rate?
Surveyors charge either a fixed fee for a defined stage, such as serving notice or making an award, or an hourly rate. A fixed fee gives you certainty for straightforward work. For the adjoining owner’s surveyor, you pay their reasonable fees, which they usually charge by the hour, so it helps to keep the process simple and respond quickly.
What about security for expenses?
For some work, particularly excavation, the adjoining owner can ask the building owner to provide security, a sum held to cover the cost of putting right any damage if the work is not completed properly. Whether security is needed, and how much, is decided by the surveyors. It is not a fee, and it is returned if it is not used.
How can you keep party wall costs down?
- Talk to your neighbours first. Explaining the work before notice arrives makes consent, or agreement to one surveyor, much more likely.
- Suggest an agreed surveyor. One surveyor acting impartially for both owners is usually the lowest-cost route when an award is needed.
- Have your drawings ready. Complete structural drawings and calculations let the surveyors deal with everything at once.
- Serve notice early. Two months’ notice is needed for work to a party wall, so serving late can hold up your builder, which costs more than the notice itself.
- Record the neighbour’s property anyway. Even with consent, a schedule of condition is inexpensive protection against a later damage claim.
What does it cost if you do not serve notice?
Starting notifiable work without notice is a breach of the Act. A neighbour can ask the court for an injunction, stopping the work while notices are served and an award is made. Delays to builders, and the difficulty of defending a damage claim without a schedule of condition, can cost far more than serving notice properly.
Party wall surveyor cost: frequently asked questions
Do I have to pay for my neighbour’s party wall surveyor?
Usually, yes. The building owner normally pays the reasonable fees of the adjoining owner’s surveyor, because the work is for the building owner’s benefit. The surveyors decide this in the award.
Is it cheaper to use one surveyor for both owners?
Usually. With a single agreed surveyor, only one surveyor’s fees are incurred. The surveyor must act impartially for both owners.
Can my neighbour choose any surveyor they like?
Yes. The adjoining owner can appoint their own surveyor, and the building owner normally pays that surveyor’s reasonable fees. The Act allows anyone who is not one of the owners to act as a surveyor.
Do I need a party wall surveyor if my neighbour agrees to the work?
If your neighbour consents in writing, no award is needed. You still need to serve a valid notice, and many owners also have a schedule of condition prepared to protect both sides.
Can the fees be challenged?
Yes. If you think the fees set out in an award are unreasonable, you can appeal to the county court within 14 days of the award being served.
This guide is general information about the Party Wall etc. Act 1996, which applies in England and Wales. It is not legal advice.
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Tell us about your project, the drawings you have and the neighbours affected, and we will explain what is needed and give you a quote. We act for building owners, for adjoining owners and as the agreed surveyor for both.
