JBS Surveying

South West London

Residential surveyor in Wandsworth

Wandsworth Town grew where the River Wandle meets the Thames, and SW18 spreads south from there through the streets around Wandsworth Common to Earlsfield and Southfields. Most of the housing is Victorian and Edwardian, with 1930s council estates in Earlsfield, early 20th century terraces in Southfields and newer flats along the river and in the town centre.

Level 2 from £649, Level 2 Plus from £849, Level 3 from £895, including all taxes and fees.

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  • SW18
  • SW17

Local property context

What matters when surveying in Wandsworth

Wandsworth buyers range from families buying a terraced house near the common to first-time buyers looking at a flat in Earlsfield or a newer riverside block. The terraces around the common and in Southfields are often extended into the loft and to the rear. The survey has to separate those alterations, and any movement around them, from the ordinary wear of an older house, and to flag where flood risk from the Wandle or the Thames needs a closer look.

A Level 2 or Level 2 Plus suits most flats and many unaltered terraces. A Level 3 is the better choice for an extended or older house near the common, for a property with cracking noticed at the viewing, or where you plan building work. For a Fieldview flat in Earlsfield, a Level 2 Plus usually explains the shared structure well.

Local knowledge for Wandsworth buyers

Wandsworth Common Conservation Area, designated in 1986, is made up mainly of two and three storey Victorian and Edwardian terraces and semi-detached houses around the common, divided into ten character areas. It includes the late Victorian streets known as the Toast Rack. Houses here are often extended into the loft and to the rear, and in a conservation area the front elevation, windows and roof are more closely controlled.

Earlsfield and Southfields have their own estates. The Magdalen Park Conservation Area covers private Edwardian and neo-Georgian terraces built by Holloway Brothers and two council estates from around 1933: Openview, with 376 houses, and Fieldview, with 344 flats designed to look like terraced houses, two to a plot. In Southfields, the Wimbledon Park Road Conservation Area covers red-brick terraces with tile-hung bays built between 1910 and 1920 by Allen and Norris.

Wandsworth’s flood risk assessment describes river terrace deposits over London Clay across much of the area, with alluvium along the Wandle valley. The lower Wandle and the Thames riverside are protected by tidal defences, but surface water and river flooding are mapped separately, so properties near the Wandle in Earlsfield and Wandsworth Town are worth checking on the Environment Agency long term flood risk service.

Property types in the area

  • Victorian and Edwardian terraces around Wandsworth Common
  • 1930s council-built houses and paired flats in Earlsfield
  • Early 20th century terraces in Southfields
  • Houses converted into flats
  • Riverside and town centre apartment developments

Condition themes to consider

These are prompts for inspection, not a prediction that a particular home has a defect.

  • Clay shrinkage movement near mature trees
  • Loft conversions and rear extensions on terraces
  • Repair responsibility in houses split into flats
  • Flood risk near the Wandle and the Thames
  • Replacement windows and doors in conservation areas
  • Defects in newer riverside blocks

Before exchange of contracts

  • Tell us about any loft conversion, rear extension or basement in the particulars.
  • For a Fieldview flat, ask how the roof, porch and drains are shared with the flat above or below.
  • Check the Environment Agency long term flood risk result for addresses near the Wandle or the river.
  • For a riverside apartment, ask for the building warranty and fire safety information for the block.

Wandsworth survey questions

Are the Fieldview homes in Earlsfield houses or flats?
They are flats. The Fieldview estate, built by the council around 1933, has 344 flats designed to look like terraced houses, two to a plot, while the neighbouring Openview estate is houses. JBS Surveying usually suggests a Level 2 Plus for a Fieldview flat, so the shared roof, porch and drainage can be explained alongside the flat itself.
Which survey do I need for a property in Wandsworth?
A Level 2 or Level 2 Plus suits most flats and many unaltered terraces. A Level 3 is the better choice for an extended or older house near the common, for a property with cracking noticed at the viewing, or where you plan building work. For a Fieldview flat in Earlsfield, a Level 2 Plus usually explains the shared structure well.
How much does a home survey cost in Wandsworth?
For homes up to £500,000, JBS Surveying charges from £649 for a Level 2, £849 for a Level 2 Plus and £895 for a Level 3, including all taxes and fees. Fees rise in steps with the property’s price, so we confirm the exact fee in writing once we know the price and the property.
What problems do surveyors often find in Wandsworth homes?
Common themes in Wandsworth include clay shrinkage movement near mature trees, loft conversions and rear extensions on terraces, repair responsibility in houses split into flats and flood risk near the Wandle and the Thames. These are prompts for the inspection, not a prediction that a particular home has a defect; the report rates each part of the property and says what to do next.
Is Wandsworth at risk of subsidence or flooding?
Much of south west London sits on London Clay, which shrinks and swells with moisture, while land nearer the Thames lies on river gravels and alluvium, where groundwater and flood risk matter more than clay shrinkage. Ground conditions vary street by street: the British Geological Survey GeoIndex shows the geology for an address, and the Environment Agency’s long term flood risk service shows the flood risk for the postcode. The survey reports any signs of movement or damp it finds and when to involve a structural engineer or insurer.
Do you cover SW18 and SW17?
Yes. JBS Surveying is based in Queen’s Park, NW6, and surveys homes in Wandsworth (SW18 and SW17) and across London. Joe Weaver, AssocRICS, RICS Registered Valuer and MRPSA, inspects every property and writes every report. Level 2 and Level 2 Plus reports are typically issued within 5 working days of the inspection and Level 3 reports within 7.

Wandsworth survey enquiries

Tell us about the property before you choose

Send the Wandsworth postcode, sales particulars and any concerns you already have. JBS will confirm coverage and explain which survey level appears proportionate before you book.

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Official guidance and further reading

These independent sources explain the wider professional, legal and maintenance context. They do not replace advice about the particular property or its title.

Survey options in Wandsworth

All three follow the RICS Home Survey Standard and use the same condition ratings. The difference is how much the report explains, and all three are available in Wandsworth.

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Valuations from £325. See valuations

Neighbouring areas we cover

South West London

Putney

Putney grew from a riverside settlement at the Thames crossing, and the land rises south from the Embankment and Lower Richmond Road to the high ground of Putney Heath. Its housing runs from Victorian terraces and late Victorian riverside houses to Edwardian and 1930s mansion flats, with the post-war Alton Estate at Roehampton to the west. It is in the London Borough of Wandsworth.

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South West London

Battersea

Much of Battersea was built on low-lying fields beside the Thames from the 1860s onwards, as planned estates of terraces, villas and later mansion blocks. Most of it is in the London Borough of Wandsworth, and the riverside around Nine Elms and Battersea Power Station has seen large new apartment developments.

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South West London

Clapham

Clapham grew around its common, where large houses were built in the 18th century, and filled out with Victorian and Edwardian terraces in the later 19th century. The area is split between Lambeth, which covers Clapham Old Town and the east and south sides of the common, and Wandsworth, which covers North Side, West Side and the streets towards Clapham Junction.

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South West London

Balham

Balham’s housing dates mostly from the late Victorian and Edwardian decades, laid out in streets of red-brick terraces and semi-detached houses between Clapham and Tooting Bec Commons. Most of the area is in Wandsworth, while the Hyde Farm Estate on its eastern edge is in Lambeth.

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South West London

Tooting

Much of Tooting’s housing dates from the decades either side of 1900, including the London County Council’s Totterdown Fields estate, built between 1901 and 1911 as the first of its cottage estates. It is in the London Borough of Wandsworth, with Victorian and Edwardian terraces around the high streets and Tooting Bec and Tooting Graveney commons.

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South West London

Wimbledon

Wimbledon has an old village on the hill beside Wimbledon Common and a town below it that grew after the railway opened in 1838. It is in the London Borough of Merton, with large Victorian and Edwardian houses on and around the hill, terraces in the town and towards Raynes Park, and mansion blocks and newer flats near the centre.

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