Rebuild Cost Calculations
Is your home insured for the right amount? If you ever have to make a claim, it’s essential that you have the right level of cover. One of the most important figures to get right is its rebuild cost. This isn’t the same as its market value. That includes the price of the land your home sits on, whereas rebuild cost is the amount it would take to rebuild the property if it had to be reconstructed from scratch, including materials, labour and professional fees.
Getting this figure wrong can be costly. If it’s too low and your home is underinsured, your insurer may reduce your claim settlement in proportion to the shortfall, or refuse to pay out at all. If it’s too high, you could end up paying higher premiums than necessary. Our RICS-qualified surveyors will help you calculate an accurate rebuild cost, giving you confidence that you’re paying for the cover you need and giving you peace of mind that sufficient funds are available should you ever need to rebuild your home.
What’s included in a Tate rebuild cost assessment?
To give you a figure you can rely on, our surveyors combine an on-site inspection with up-to-date industry cost data – whether it’s your home or a commercial property. As standard, our assessment includes:
- A full on-site inspection of your property, measuring the gross internal floor area
- Assessment of construction type, age, materials and any period or non-standard features
- Application of current BCIS (Building Cost Information Service) rebuild rates specific to your property and location
- Costs for garages, outbuildings, boundary walls, driveways and other hard landscaping
- Allowance for demolition, site clearance, professional fees and compliance with current building regulations
- A clear, easy-to-understand report you can send straight to your insurer or broker
Rebuild Cost Calculation FAQs
It’s a professional, on-site survey that works out how much it would cost to completely rebuild your property if it were destroyed. Carried out by a RICS-qualified surveyor, it takes into account your home’s size, construction, age and features, using current BCIS (Building Cost Information Service) data to give an accurate, defensible figure for your insurer.
Rebuild cost is based on your property’s internal floor area, construction type, age and features, applied against current BCIS (Building Cost Information Service) build cost data. You can get a rough, national-average figure from a free online calculator, but it can’t see your actual property – so it won’t pick up on period features, extensions, non-standard construction or anything else that changes the real cost of rebuilding. The only way to get a figure you can rely on for your insurance policy is a professional, on-site assessment, which is exactly what our RICS surveyors provide for homes across Sussex.
No. Market value is what your home would sell for, including the value of the land and its location. Rebuild cost is purely the cost of reconstructing the building itself. The two figures are often very different, and using your market value to set your insurance cover can leave you significantly over or under insured.
Online calculators are a useful starting point for conventional properties, but they work from national averages and can’t see your actual building. Period features, non-standard construction, extensions and listed status can all significantly change the true rebuild cost, which is why we recommend a professional assessment for anything other than a straightforward modern home.
We’d recommend reviewing it every time you renew your buildings insurance, and immediately after any extension, loft conversion or major renovation. Construction costs also change year to year, so even an unaltered property can drift out of date.
Many insurance policies apply what’s known as an ‘average clause’. If your rebuild cost is set too low, your insurer can reduce any claim payout by the same percentage that you’re underinsured – even for a partial claim, and in some cases they may refuse to pay out at all. An accurate rebuild cost assessment is the best way to avoid this shortfall.
Yes. Alongside residential homes, our RICS surveyors carry out rebuild cost assessments for commercial and mixed-use buildings across Sussex – from shops and offices to industrial and light commercial units. Commercial properties often bring more complex construction, services and fit-out costs into the calculation, so getting a professional, on-site figure matters just as much for business owners and landlords as it does for homeowners.
Ready to get your rebuild cost assessed?
For an accurate, RICS-backed rebuild cost assessment for your Sussex home or commercial property, call us today on 01273 031646, or book an appointment online.
