Structural Surveys in Swansea

Structural Surveys in Swansea start from around £450 for a standard 3-bed terraced or semi-detached house showing moderate structural defects. Prices increase with property size, complexity, and the extent of opening-up works required — expect £550 to £750 for larger detached homes in Sketty, Mumbles, or Uplands, or properties with multiple significant defects requiring detailed investigation. Swansea pricing sits around 15-20% below the national average due to lower property values in South Wales, but the technical work involved is often more complex given the prevalence of mining subsidence, contaminated ground, and shallow-founded Victorian construction. The price includes the on-site investigation, opening-up works, structural analysis, and a detailed written report with costed remediation recommendations.

If cracks in walls are wider than 3mm, increasing in width, or accompanied by other symptoms such as sloping floors, sticking doors, or visible lean in walls, then securing a professional structural investigation is strongly recommended. Cracking in the city can be caused by several factors: mining subsidence from former coal workings beneath the Swansea Valley, clay shrinkage due to tree root activity or prolonged dry periods, inadequate foundations in pre-1919 stone terraces, or differential movement in Victorian bay windows built on separate footings. Engineers will measure crack widths, assess whether movement is ongoing, identify the underlying cause, and provide a costed repair strategy. Mortgage lenders routinely refuse to lend on properties with visible structural defects until an engineer's report confirms the property is mortgageable, so professional assessment is often a prerequisite to completing your purchase.

For a typical Swansea terraced or semi-detached house with visible structural defects, the on-site inspection takes 3 to 5 hours. Larger properties, period homes with complex construction, or cases requiring extensive opening-up works — such as lifting multiple floorboards, removing sections of plaster to examine walls, or accessing difficult roof voids — may take up to 6 hours. The structural engineer will take precise measurements, photographs, and notes, and may use specialist equipment including laser levels, crack gauges, moisture meters, and endoscopes. The detailed structural report follows within 5 to 7 working days and includes structural calculations, annotated photographs, defect analysis, and costed remediation recommendations. Follow-up site visits for crack monitoring or post-repair inspection can be arranged separately if required.

Engineers will examine the property for physical evidence of ground movement consistent with mining subsidence, including diagonal or stepped cracking in walls, floor-level deviations, door and window frame distortion, and wall lean or bulging. The city lies on the western edge of the South Wales Coalfield, and the Coal Authority identifies areas including Morriston, Clydach, Pontardawe, Cwmbwrla, and Townhill as high-risk coal mining reporting areas where shallow mine workings, bell pits, or mine entries are recorded. If evidence suggesting mining-related movement is found, the report will recommend a formal Coal Authority mining search, which costs around £50 and identifies known mine entries, shallow workings, and past subsidence claims within 50 metres of the property. In some cases, a full ground investigation with trial pits or boreholes may be required to confirm ground conditions and design appropriate foundation repairs.

Properties in the Lower Swansea Valley — particularly in Hafod, St Thomas, Landore, and parts of Morriston — were built on or adjacent to land used for copper smelting between the 1700s and early 1900s. Soil contamination with copper, arsenic, lead, sulphur, and other heavy metals is well documented in these areas, and the presence of acidic or sulphate-rich ground can cause accelerated corrosion of concrete foundations and reinforcement. Your structural investigation will note any evidence of concrete degradation, foundation deterioration, or below-ground defects consistent with contaminated ground, but it does not include soil testing. If contamination is suspected — particularly if you are planning to build an extension, excavate a basement, or grow food in the garden — the surveyor will recommend a Phase I or Phase II environmental site assessment by a specialist geotechnical consultant.

Absolutely. The structural report provides quantified defect descriptions, estimated repair costs, and a professional engineer's assessment of the building's condition, all of which give you a factual basis for renegotiation. In Swansea, where the average property price is £207,000, structural defects can significantly affect value: underpinning for subsidence costs £10,000 to £20,000, bay window repairs run £4,000 to £8,000, and wall tie replacement costs £3,000 to £6,000. Many buyers use the survey findings to negotiate a price reduction equivalent to the repair costs, or to request that the seller completes specific remediation works before exchange of contracts. Some sellers prefer to reduce the price rather than undertake repairs, allowing you to instruct your own contractors and ensure the work meets building regulations standards.

A Building Survey (also called a Level 3 survey) is a comprehensive assessment of a property's overall condition, covering roofs, walls, floors, drainage, services, and all building elements. It is suited to older properties or those in poor condition, but it is not focused specifically on structural defects. By contrast, targeted structural investigations are requested when a property is already showing visible symptoms of structural distress — such as cracking, movement, or subsidence — and requires detailed structural engineering analysis to determine the cause, extent, and remediation strategy. For properties in the city where mining subsidence, shallow foundations, and ground contamination create elevated structural risk, obtaining a professional structural report is the appropriate choice if you can see cracks wider than 3mm, if floors are noticeably sloping, or if your mortgage lender has raised concerns about the property's structural integrity.

Properties in the city — particularly those in the Swansea Valley, Morriston, and northern suburbs built over the South Wales Coalfield — are statistically more likely to require underpinning or foundation stabilisation than properties in non-mining regions. The combination of former coal workings, shallow Victorian foundations (often less than 500mm depth), and clay soil conditions creates elevated subsidence risk. Coastal properties along Swansea Bay face additional ground movement risks from coastal erosion, salt weathering, and water table fluctuations. Underpinning is not always necessary — in many cases, crack monitoring over 12 months can confirm that movement has stabilised, allowing less invasive repairs such as crack stitching or cosmetic making-good. Your structural report will determine whether active movement is occurring and whether underpinning is proportionate, or if alternative solutions such as improved drainage, tree management, or foundation reinforcement are more appropriate and cost-effective.