Schedule of Condition

What is a schedule of condition?

A schedule of condition is a detailed photographic and written record of a property's condition at a fixed point in time, prepared by a chartered surveyor. It is the benchmark evidence that later determines what damage was — and was not — caused by building works, and what repair liability a tenant did — and did not — take on.

When you need a schedule of condition

• Party wall works — recorded before notifiable works begin, so damage claims can be settled on evidence rather than argument.
• Commercial leases — appended to a lease to limit a tenant's repairing obligations to the documented condition.
• Construction and neighbouring works — protecting owners adjacent to demolition, basement or development sites.
• Disputes — where matters escalate, the schedule becomes core evidence in expert reports and negotiations.

Schedule of condition for party wall works

The most common trigger in England and Wales is the Party Wall etc. Act 1996. Before notifiable works begin — a loft conversion cutting into the party wall, a rear extension, a basement dig — a schedule of condition of the adjoining owner's property is recorded, usually by the appointed surveyor(s) as part of the award process. It protects both sides: the adjoining owner holds dated photographic evidence of every existing crack and stain, and the building owner holds proof of what was already there before any claim lands for “damage” that predates the works. When neighbours consent to a notice, a stand-alone photographic schedule of condition is the one precaution still worth taking; when they dissent, the schedule is normally appended to the award — see the panel's party wall services for the full process. Either way, the cost is trivial next to arguing about an undocumented crack after the event.

Schedule of condition for a commercial lease

The second major use is defensive lease drafting. Most commercial leases put repairing obligations on the tenant, and an unqualified covenant can oblige the tenant to hand the property back in better condition than it was let. A schedule of condition, prepared before signing and formally appended to the lease, caps that obligation at the documented state of the building — so the tenant of a tired 1980s unit cannot be billed at lease end for a roof it never had. At lease end it becomes the tenant's principal defence in a dilapidations claim, and for landlords a clear schedule limits argument in the other direction too. Combined instructions with a commercial building survey are common, so the lease decision and the condition evidence come from one inspection.

What a photographic schedule of condition includes

A systematic room-by-room and elevation-by-elevation record: dated, high-resolution photographs cross-referenced to written descriptions of every defect, crack and staining, with previous repairs and the standard of decoration noted. The written element matters as much as the images — a photograph shows a crack, but the schedule records its width, position and significance so change can be proven later. Where roofs are relevant and access is unsafe, drone imagery extends the record to coverings no one can walk. Where used for party wall or lease purposes, the schedule is agreed and appended so both parties are bound by the same record.

How much does a schedule of condition cost?

Fees depend on the property's size and complexity and are quoted fixed in advance — a two-bedroom terrace adjoining a domestic extension is a different exercise from a warehouse pre-lease record — and preparing one alongside another instruction (a party wall appointment, a commercial survey) usually costs less than commissioning it separately. Set the fee against what it insures: repair disputes are settled on evidence, and the party without evidence pays for the gap.

How long does it take?

Most schedules are inspected and issued within a week, faster where a works start date or lease completion is fixed. Tell us the deadline when you instruct and we can arrange the inspection to meet it.

Schedule of condition vs schedule of dilapidations

The two are often confused. A schedule of condition records the state of a property at a point in time — neutral, factual, forward-looking protection. A schedule of dilapidations is a claim: it itemises alleged breaches of a tenant's repairing covenants, usually at lease end, and prices the remedy. The first is the document you commission before works or a lease begin; the second is the document you may face afterwards — and the best answer to it is usually the schedule of condition someone had the foresight to append years earlier.

When the schedule becomes evidence

Where matters escalate, the schedule becomes core evidence, and the panel's expert witness surveyors — including construction expert witness instructions — can rely on it in CPR Part 35 reports. A schedule agreed and dated before works started is routinely the single most persuasive document in a damage claim.

Schedules of condition sit within the panel's wider building surveying services. Get a fixed schedule of condition quote →