This book is written as a practical guide for surveyors and others who may be asked to survey buildings and prepare reports. Although not primarily intended as a text book on building construction, it is also aimed at the student who, whilst perhaps familiar with basic building construction, lacks the knowledge or experience of building performance. The preparation of reports on buildings is a very personal service and since no two surveyors and no two clients will be the same, the style and content of reports can vary considerably from case to case, from practice to practice and in different localities. Though the writers would not wish to try to impose complete uniformity, they have observed certain broad principles in preparing the advice which their book offers and have paid particular regard to the recommendations laid down in the Practice Note Structural Surveys of Residential Property (May 1981) issued by the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS). The intention of this Practice Note was to introduce some uniformity of procedure and to improve the general standard of reports on residential property prepared by chartered surveyors.