The disputes I see every day — and what they could have been avoided with

In my years working as a building surveyor, I've sat at a lot of kitchen tables. Sometimes it's a homeowner excitedly planning a loft conversion; sometimes it's the same homeowner, six months later, frustrated, confused, and at loggerheads with the neighbour next door. After handling hundreds of cases here at Pearce & Pearce, I can tell you that most disputes I encounter don't come from bad intentions — they come from a lack of information at the right moment.

So I wanted to share the three disputes that land on my desk most regularly, what usually triggers them, and how things could so often have gone differently.

Party wall disagreements

By far the most common scenario I'm called into. A homeowner begins building work — a rear extension, perhaps, or underpinning — without serving a party wall notice on their adjoining neighbours. It seems like a small administrative step, but skipping it can grind an entire project to a halt. I've seen builds stopped mid-pour because the legal process simply wasn't followed. Under the Party Wall etc. Act 1996, notice is a legal requirement, not a courtesy. Once I'm brought in as an agreed surveyor, my job is to draw up a Party Wall Award that protects both sides — but it's always smoother, cheaper, and far less stressful when the process starts correctly from day one.

What strikes me most about party wall disputes is how personal they become. What starts as a planning matter quickly turns into a neighbour relationship problem. I always say: serve your notice early, keep communication open, and if in any doubt, call a qualified surveyor before you break ground — not after.

New build snagging — developer pushback

Moving into a brand-new home should be one of life's great moments. But I regularly meet buyers who've moved in, spotted a list of problems — cracked plasterwork, poorly fitted doors, inconsistent floor finishes, even structural issues — and are now fighting an uphill battle to get their developer to acknowledge them. Without a professional snagging survey, carried out ideally before legal completion, buyers are often left relying on their own (understandably untrained) eye. Developers are not always forthcoming once the keys are handed over. Having a documented snagging list compiled by a qualified surveyor changes that conversation entirely — it's harder to dismiss a professional report than a homeowner's complaint.

"Asnagging survey isn't about finding fault for the sake of it. It's about making sure the home you've paid for is the home you were promised."

Damp — misdiagnosis and missed causes

Damp is one of the most misunderstood issues in residential property. I regularly encounter cases where a homeowner has had a damp-proofing company come in, quote thousands of pounds for a chemical injection course, and carry out the work — only for the problem to return within a year. Why? Because in many cases the real culprit wasn't rising damp at all; it was condensation, a blocked external drain, or a bridged cavity wall. An independent damp surveyor has no financial incentive to recommend remedial works — our role is to diagnose the cause accurately. Getting the right diagnosis first can save homeowners a significant amount of money and a great deal of frustration.

If there's one thing I'd want anyone reading this to take away, it's this: the cost of getting professional surveying advice early is almost always far less than the cost of untangling a problem that's been allowed to grow. At Pearce & Pearce, we've built our practice on being straightforward, jargon-free, and genuinely on the side of the people we work for — whether that's a first-time buyer, a homeowner planning an extension, or someone who's just discovered their dream new build isn't quite as perfect as it looked on the show home.

If any of this sounds familiar, we're always happy to have a conversation.