Structural engineer or RICS surveyor: which do you need?

29 October 2026 · Blog

Buying a home, worried about a crack or planning building work? You’ll hear about both RICS surveyors and structural engineers. They do different jobs, and choosing the right one saves time and money. Here’s the difference in plain English.

What a RICS surveyor does
A RICS surveyor looks at the general condition of a whole property. When you buy a home, you’ll usually choose one of the RICS Home Survey levels:
• Level 1: a basic condition report, for newer homes in good condition.
• Level 2: a more detailed report for conventional homes in reasonable condition, sometimes with a valuation.
• Level 3: the most detailed survey, for older, larger or altered homes.
A surveyor covers everything from the roof and windows to damp, drainage and services. What they don’t usually do is investigate a structural problem in depth. If they spot cracking, movement or an altered wall, the report will often say “refer to a structural engineer”.

What a structural engineer does
A structural engineer focuses on how the building stands up. We:
• Investigate specific structural concerns such as cracks, bulging walls, sloping floors and subsidence
• Work out the cause, and whether the movement is old and stable or still happening
• Recommend the right fix, from monitoring to repair or underpinning
• Confirm whether walls are load-bearing
• Design structural alterations, such as steel beams, chimney breast removals, extensions and loft conversions, with the calculations Building Control needs

Inside a loft on one of our projects: the roof timbers, chimney breast and walls all need checking before alterations go ahead.

Which do you need?
• Buying a home: start with a RICS survey. If it flags a structural concern, get a structural engineer’s report before you exchange.
• Worried about a crack or movement: a structural engineer. Crack and subsidence reports →
• Removing a wall or chimney breast: a structural engineer, for the assessment and the design. Wall assessments → Chimney breast removal →
• Extending or converting your loft: a structural engineer for the structural design and calculations.
• Need a valuation or general condition check: a RICS surveyor.

Is a mortgage valuation a survey?
No. A mortgage valuation is for your lender, to confirm the property is worth what they’re lending. It isn’t a survey, and it won’t tell you about structural problems.

Can I use both?
Yes, and that’s often the best approach for older homes. The surveyor gives you the full picture, and the engineer looks closely at anything structural. Our reports are written in plain English, so you can share them with your surveyor, solicitor, lender or builder.

About us
We are structural and civil engineers, not RICS surveyors, and we don’t value properties. We inspect, diagnose and design across London, Sussex, Kent, Surrey and Essex.

Guide prices: specific inspection £950 + VAT, general inspection approx. £1,700 + VAT, load-bearing wall assessment £600 inc. VAT. We can usually visit within 3 working days.

Pre-purchase structural surveys →
All our structural surveys →
Book a visit or call 020 3835 2633