Petros, an architect and director acting for a landlord, got in touch to commission a measured survey and existing drawings for a house in Upminster. The brief was:
- Two floor plans of the main house
- Three elevations
- Inclusion of a home-office outbuilding in the rear garden
The property was HMO tenanted, which meant access needed to be coordinated carefully so tenants had proper notice and the landlord’s obligations were respected.
Petros supplied the estate agent’s brochure, and we quickly flagged a small address ambiguity we’d spotted between the brochure and his email. Once he confirmed that the address in his message was correct, we were happy to proceed.
Scoping, quotation & locking in the survey date
Based on the clarified scope, we prepared a quotation covering:
- Internal measured survey of two storeys
- Existing ground and first floor plans
- Three elevations, including the rear elevation that related to the home-office outbuilding
- CAD (DWG) and PDF deliverables, suitable for planning and design
We also asked whether a site plan was required; this allowed Petros to keep the scope tight, knowing we could revise the quote if he needed more later.
Once Petros confirmed he was happy to proceed, we:
- Issued an initial invoice, explaining that payment would secure and activate the survey slot
- Proposed a survey date the following week, with an arrival window between 1:00 and 2:00 pm and an estimated on-site time of around 1.5 hours
- Confirmed that, once payment was received, we’d share the surveyor’s full contact details so he could brief the landlord and tenants properly
After payment landed, we sent a confirmation email:
- Acknowledging receipt of funds
- Sharing the surveyor’s name and mobile number
- Reconfirming the survey date and arrival window
This gave Petros everything he needed to notify the landlord and ensure tenants were expecting a surveyor.
How we carried out the survey
On the day, our surveyor, Ali, attended as agreed and carried out the internal survey using:
- A laser distance meter for fast, accurate measurements
- A tablet with our digital sketch template, to build the plans as he went
- A steel tape for cross-checks on key spans and tight areas
- A full set of site photos, including the main house and external areas
Because the house was HMO-occupied, circulation spaces, bedroom layouts and shared areas had to be recorded efficiently without causing undue disruption. Ali worked methodically through each floor, confirming stair positions, window and door openings, and the relationship between the main house and the rear outbuilding.
Shortly afterwards, we emailed Petros to confirm that the survey had gone well and provided an estimated date for delivering the drawings.
Turning the survey into drawings
Back in the studio, our CAD team converted the measured notes into a clean existing-drawings package:
- Ground and first floor plans laid out at standard architectural scale
- Three elevations showing the main façades
- The home-office outbuilding set out in the rear garden, with its relationship to the main house clearly shown
- Dimensions, level information and annotations suitable for planning and future design work
We prepared a draft PDF pack and moved the Trello card to our “Approval / Finalisation / Pending” stage.
Managing a missed outbuilding & tenant constraints
During our internal QA, we realised that although the main house had been captured fully, our surveyor had missed measuring the outbuilding internally on the first visit.
We took full responsibility for this and wrote to Petros:
- Openly explaining the oversight
- Offering a free revisit to capture the outbuilding properly
- Acknowledging the extra inconvenience of arranging access again with HMO tenants
Petros appreciated the honesty but let us know that his client was unhappy something had been missed, which is understandable. To show good faith and protect the relationship, we:
- Reaffirmed that the revisit would be completely free of charge
- Offered a 50% discount on the survey payment for his next project as a gesture of goodwill
- Provided the draft drawings of the main house so he could already start reviewing and planning while we sorted the revisit
We then worked through the practicalities:
- Petros spoke to the landlord and tenants and came back asking for alternative dates (Friday, Saturday or Monday)
- We offered a Friday afternoon slot from 3:00 pm onwards, which was then confirmed
- Our surveyor returned to site, only to find the outbuilding still locked and the tenant unaware of any special arrangements
Ali spoke to someone on site (Bo) and did his best to gather sufficient information from the outside and any partial views, so that we could still complete a realistic and useful drawing of the outbuilding without forcing yet another visit on everyone.
Petros acknowledged how tricky it can be with an HMO and confirmed he was happy to await the finalised drawings based on what we were able to capture.
Final issue, photos and outcome
With the additional information in hand, we:
- Updated the drawings so the outbuilding was properly reflected alongside the main house
- Compiled the full draft pack including the outbuilding plans
- Issued the final invoice, explaining that once the payment was settled, we would release the final drawings, CAD files and photographs
Petros then:
- Settled the final payment
- Specifically asked us to share the site photos along with the drawings
Our closing email:
- Confirmed receipt of payment, with the receipt attached
- Provided a secure link to all final drawings and related files
- Explicitly confirmed that site photographs were included with the final deliverables
The Trello card was moved to Completed, with:
- A full measured plans-and-elevations package, including the home-office outbuilding
- CAD (DWG) files, PDFs and site photos ready for Petros’ design and planning work
- A clear record of how we dealt with a missed outbuilding, HMO access constraints and an unhappy end client in a way that was transparent, apologetic, and generous on future fees
For us, this project is a good example of how we handle things when everything isn’t perfect first time: own the mistake, compensate fairly, and still deliver a clean, usable survey and drawings set that our professional clients can rely on.
Project Details
| Service Type | Measured survey, existing floor plans & elevations, including home-office outbuilding |
| Time Taken | 1–2 weeks |
| Budget | £700–£850 |
| Location | Upminster, East London (HMO) |
