RICS Level 2 Survey in BN11

BN11 was shaped by several big building phases. Worthing expanded quickly in the Victorian and Edwardian eras, then again through the 1930s, shifting from a quieter resort into a sizeable coastal town. You can still read that history in the housing stock, with late Victorian and Edwardian terraced and semi-detached houses, 1930s bay-fronted semis, and plenty of period buildings later split into flats during the 20th century.

Converted flats are where we often see the awkward compromises. Many BN11 conversions date from the 1960s and 1970s, a period when building regulations were less exacting, and we regularly come across poor sound insulation between floors, original wiring that has only been partly updated, plus damp in basement flats where drainage was never properly altered for the new layout. A RICS Level 2 survey on a flat covers all accessible parts of the building, not only the flat, and we record visible defects in the shared areas, the roof and the outside fabric.

There is a broad mix of purpose-built blocks in BN11, from substantial Edwardian mansion blocks near the seafront to 1960s and 1970s concrete-frame schemes further inland. In the older mansion blocks we pay close attention to the roof, the lift and the condition of communal decoration. In the post-war concrete-frame buildings, the bigger issue is often long-term durability, especially carbonation of the concrete and corrosion in the reinforcement bars, which can progress faster by the coast as salt-laden air gets into the concrete cover.

Worthing Borough Council oversees several conservation areas in BN11, and the town also has an important stock of listed buildings. The best-known examples are the pier, dating from 1862, and the Dome Cinema on Marine Parade, built in 1911 and recognised as one of the oldest purpose-built cinemas in Britain. Where a property sits in, or next to, one of these designated areas, we take extra care during the survey to identify any planning limits or works restrictions a buyer needs to know about.

Geology is fairly favourable here, though not completely straightforward. Worthing lies on the West Sussex coastal plain, the flat land between the English Channel and the chalk escarpment of the South Downs several miles inland. Much of BN11 sits over chalk bedrock, which has very low shrink-swell potential and is usually stable, but in many parts of the coastal plain that chalk is covered by superficial brickearth deposits. Brickearth is a silty loam with moderate shrink-swell potential, so where houses stand on brickearth rather than directly on chalk, there is a low-to-moderate chance of seasonal movement.

Flooding is not something we gloss over in BN11. Properties nearest the seafront, and those in the lower parts of the town, need particular attention. Environment Agency mapping shows parts of the BN11 coastal strip as having a medium flood risk from coastal inundation, and there is also a surface water risk where the Victorian and Edwardian street pattern still depends on older combined sewers that can surcharge in heavy rain. During inspection we note visible warning signs such as raised thresholds, stored flood barriers and tideline marks in basement spaces.

There is no coal mining legacy in Worthing, and no broad pattern of former industrial use that would point to widespread contamination risk across BN11. Even so, some older commercial and light industrial plots may once have involved petroleum storage or solvent use. For any property on, or right beside, a former commercial site, we would expect buyers to obtain an environmental search as part of conveyancing due diligence.

Your RICS Level 2 survey report arrives digitally within three to five working days of the inspection. Right at the front, we include a key risks summary so the Condition 3 items stand out before you work through the full report. From there, each section explains the condition in straightforward language, setting out what we saw, the rating we gave, and, where needed, our recommendation for repair work or further investigation.

For BN11 homes, we focus the report on the issues that matter locally. That includes the condition of the external walls on every elevation, including sea-facing sides, the main roof covering and any flat roof sections, all windows and other outside joinery, any communal elements we were able to inspect, and a summary of the drainage setup. On coastal properties, we also take damp meter readings at regular intervals across all external walls and record both the highest readings and exactly where they were found.

• Section-by-section condition ratings (1, 2, 3) for all accessible elements
• Damp meter readings at regular intervals across all external wall faces
• Roof assessment via binoculars from ground level and loft access where available
• Communal areas assessment (for flats) noting visible defects and their likely cost implications
• Drainage assessment noting mains connection and condition of accessible drainage outlets
• Notes on environmental risks including coastal flood zone status
• Indicative cost ranges for all Condition 3 defects
• Post-report phone call with your surveyor at no additional charge

Every report is issued as a PDF, and we keep a copy on file. Questions often come up later, sometimes months after completion when repair quotes start coming in, and if that happens you can ring our surveyor to talk through the relevant section. We do not treat the matter as closed the moment the report is sent.