Choosing a survey level
What extra description does a Level 3 give that a Level 2 does not?
RICS describes Level 3 as explaining how the building is built, the repair options, a timescale and what happens if you do not repair. Level 2 advises on defects, repairs and maintenance for a conventional home in reasonable condition. Level 3 is not automatically a valuation, and it does not automatically open things up.
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?
Choose Level 3 when the building is older, altered, unusual, or you plan work that needs that explanation. Choose Level 2 when the home is conventional and you want a clear repair-and-maintenance report. Neither choice is a moral victory. A Level 3 of a simple flat can be more report than you need. A Level 2 of a heavily altered Victorian house can be less than you need.
Ask the firm to say, in ordinary sentences, what their Level 3 will add on this address. If they cannot, you are buying a label. The fee is in their quote. RICS’s broad description of some Level 3 fees as over £1,000 is not that quote. Compare two Level 3 scopes if you are comparing price. A cheap Level 3 that excludes the outbuildings is not the same product.
What should you ask your surveyor?
- What will you write in a Level 3 that you would not write in a Level 2, for this house?
- Will either level include a valuation? I need the answer for this instruction, not in general.
- What will both levels leave unopened?
What are the typical next steps?
- Get the scope in writing before you pay.
- Do not buy Level 3 only because someone on a forum said always buy Level 3.
- Do not buy Level 2 only because the agent said the house is “solid”. Agents are not the scope.
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
Is a building survey a Level 3?
RICS’s current name is Level 3. Older reports say “building survey”. Read the date and the description. The name on a 2015 report is not a 2026 Level 3 by magic.
Does Level 3 include the cost of repairs?
It describes options and consequences. It is not a builder’s quotation. You still ask contractors for prices.