Chartered surveyors in Caernarfon

1 RICS surveyor covering 2 postcode districts around Caernarfon, in North Wales. RICS Home Survey Level 2 and Level 3.

More than a third of the housing around Caernarfon pre-dates 1900, and the town has two quite different kinds of old building: the tight streets inside and around the medieval walls, and the Victorian terraces that spread beyond them. Both are solid-wall construction, where the questions are moisture, breathability and how later repairs have treated the original fabric. Some older buildings here will be listed or in a conservation area, which limits what can be altered and is worth establishing before you commit.

Local conditions

What we check in Caernarfon.

Drawn from official open data for this area, not written from a template. It tells you what a survey here has to account for. It is not a substitute for the formal searches, and we say where those live.

2 postcode districts covered: We cover LL postcodes around Caernarfon with 1 RICS surveyor. What we look hardest at depends on the age and construction of your particular property.What a survey covers
Gwynedd: Building control records, conservation area status and planning history for Caernarfon sit with Gwynedd. Where alterations look unauthorised we will say so, and tell you what to ask your solicitor to confirm.

Sources: Environment Agency flood areas and ONS boundary data, both Open Government Licence; coalfield extents from published Coal Authority and BGS mapping. Coalfield boundaries are indicative. A mining report is the authoritative answer for any individual property.

The housing stock in Caernarfon.

37.5%

of homes within 2.4km of the centre were built pre-1900. Age is the strongest single predictor of what a survey finds, so it is where we start before we have seen the property.

Homes in Caernarfon by construction era, compared with England and Wales
Built	Share	Compared with England & Wales	Homes
Pre-1900	37.5%	+22 pts	4,080
1900–1929	7.4%	-2.6 pts	810
1930s	5%	-4.9 pts	540
1945–1964	11.1%	-5.2 pts	1,210
1965–1982	20.9%	+2.6 pts	2,270
1983–1999	7.1%	-4.8 pts	770
2000 onwards	11%	-7.1 pts	1,200

10,880 homes across 12 statistical areas within 2.4km of the centre. The marker on each bar is the England and Wales share. Source: Valuation Office Agency, Council Tax stock of properties, © Crown copyright, Open Government Licence v3.0.

What that means on an inspection

Pre-1900

Normally solid walls of brick or stone with no cavity, lime mortar, timber suspended floors and lath-and-plaster internally. Any damp-proof course is either slate or absent altogether.

What we usually find. Damp at low level is the most frequent finding, usually where a slate damp-proof course has been bridged by raised ground or by later solid floors and cement render. Chimney stacks, roof coverings and rainwater goods are often at or beyond the end of their serviceable lives, and earlier repointing in cement rather than lime can trap moisture and spall the brick face.

Worth knowing. Solid walls cannot be treated like cavity walls. Injected chemical courses and internal tanking frequently move the problem rather than resolve it, so the cause matters more than the last remedy applied.

1965–1982

Cavity walls with insulation increasingly built in, flat-roofed elements such as garages, dormers and rear additions, and a broader range of manufactured materials.

What we usually find. Flat roofs of this era are frequently on their second or third covering and are a common source of water ingress. Textured coatings applied before the mid-1980s may contain asbestos, as may some cement products, soffits and floor tiles.

Worth knowing. Asbestos-containing materials are usually safe if undisturbed and in good order, but they matter a great deal if you intend to remove ceilings, take down a garage or open up the layout.

These are tendencies of the local stock, not findings on any particular house. A well-maintained Victorian terrace can be in better order than a neglected 1990s semi, which is the entire reason a survey is done on the building in front of you rather than on its postcode.

Available in Caernarfon