Condition ratings
Nothing on the visit sampled a rating 3, opened words about further investigation or tested a repair price the rating does not print. What has to stay undecided?
The outcome of any investigation, and any cost, have to stay undecided. Nothing on the visit turned rating 3 into a laboratory sample, and nothing tested a repair price the rating does not print. Rating 3 means serious and/or urgent repair, replacement or investigation. The words about further investigation are part of that meaning. They are not a finished investigation, and they are not a priced list. The survey has given the rating. It has not chosen the repair, and it has not decided what the further look will find.
Last reviewed 24 October 2026. Written for buyers in England and Wales unless this answer says otherwise. No named surveyor has signed this page. It is general guidance, not a report on your house, and not legal advice.
What is the fuller explanation?
A rating 3 is a flag. It can mean the surveyor already sees something serious, or that the next step is to investigate before anyone can say how serious the hidden part is. Either reading still withholds a price. The report is not an estimate, and it does not print one. Opening the words, in the sense of carrying out the investigation, did not happen on this visit. What stays undecided is the result of that next look and the choice of repair or replacement.
Ask the surveyor what the rating 3 is asking to be investigated, and instruct that specialist rather than a price. Tell the solicitor there is a serious and/or urgent item and that no repair cost was tested or printed. Do not let a contractor's guess become part of the report. When the investigation returns, read it as new information. It does not rewrite the fact that this visit stopped at the rating.
What should you ask your surveyor?
- What further investigation is the rating 3 actually calling for?
- Has any repair price been left unprinted on purpose?
- Is the rating a flag rather than a completed investigation?
What are the typical next steps?
- Treat rating 3 as a prompt to investigate, not as a price.
- Ask the surveyor what the further look needs to cover.
- Tell the solicitor no repair cost was printed.
Costs vary with the building and with who you instruct. Where this page does not cite a published figure, ask the surveyor, a relevant specialist, or your solicitor for a written quote. Do not treat a forum average as the price.
Also asked about this
Does rating 3 always mean something must be replaced?
No. Rating 3 means serious and/or urgent repair, replacement or investigation. Investigation is one of those paths, not a demand that replacement has already been chosen. The visit did not price a repair and did not finish the investigation. What is urgent is the need to take the mark seriously. The method stays open.
Can a contractor's quote be treated as the rating?
No. A quote is a price, and the rating does not print one. Rating 3 means serious and/or urgent repair, replacement or investigation. A figure from a firm is a later commercial offer, not part of this visit. The survey has not tested that figure. Keep it out of the condition mark.