What does a quantity surveyor do?

In a nutshell, a quantity surveyor is responsible for the overall costs involved in a building project, from the initial estimates to the ordering and acquisition of materials required for the project through to the completion of the project. Your appointed surveyor will take charge of the preparation of contracts for the acquisition of materials and for the on-going cost analysis. They will also make site visits to assess ongoing work and can organise payments to contractors. A quantity surveyor has an expert knowledge of building regulations and will ensure that your building project adheres to all legal and good quality standards.

Less uncertainty and controlled costs

Building your own home is certainly a daunting task and one which you will probably undertake only once in a lifetime. It is one of the biggest investments you will ever make but self-building gives you the ultimate freedom, within legal limits of course, to design a home to your exact specification and can be a reasonably low-cost way to get on the home ownership ladder.

As your project progresses it will be easy to see costs spiralling out of control particularly if you make ongoing changes or if unforeseen problems occur.

This is why it is essential to establish your budget at the very beginning and a quantity surveyor can help you to identify the costs involved right at the planning stage. Knowing what the costs are going to be at this stage can avoid the pitfalls of potentially running out of budget later on down the line.

Once underway, you will have the reassuring certainty of knowing that your quantity surveyor is keeping a watch on all the costs involved with the project and will recommend alternatives if necessary.

Reduce the risk

Successful house building is all about taking as few risks as possible whilst saving money wherever possible and this is where a good quantity surveyor proves his/her worth. Appointing a quantity surveyor for your building project will ultimately prove to be a very wise, cost-effective decision.