A Day In The Life Of A Surveyor
We had the pleasure of speaking to our very own Senior Surveyor Mentor, Mohammed Aslam, who gave great insight into his day to day happenings at RVA Surveyors.
Why did you become a Surveyor?
I stumbled into it to be honest while working for my father who is self-employed. I previously handled his accounts, during this task I noticed how much he was paying on his business rates. From there I decided to speak to the local council as the rateable value seemed unusually high. This resulted in a reduced liability for my dad, from there I was curious to learn more ever since.
What does the typical day as a Surveyor look like?
A typical day on inspection involves driving across all regions of England and Wales to measure and draw properties to identify business rate reductions. I speak to clients and advise them on their rateable value, guiding them through the check challenge appeal process. A typical day in office involves, liaising with the Valuation Office Agency and other departments within the business such as the gateway and audit team to create the most hassle free way for our clients to reduce their rates. I am also a mentor of the Surveying team at RVA Surveyors, with this I have to ensure my team is working to their targets whilst assuring their work is up to standard.
What challenges do you face on the job?
Quite frequently we will have the pleasure of inspecting properties with unusual shapes which can be a difficult task especially when drawing them up.
Some properties are unfit for inspection due to the level of repair required e.g old Mills which have become home to pigeons, missing or broken floors, black mold, broken/weak staircases – in each event, we take extra care whilst ensuring our client receives the highest standard of service possible.
What skills do you need to become a Surveyor?
You need to have a good understanding of the building industry and be computer literate. Its also important to have good rapport building skills. You also need to have great spatial awareness skills as keeping you orientation while drawing up a detailed floor plan isn’t as easy as it may seem. Despite this, I enjoy complex properties as it requires me to test my knowledge and abilities.
What do you like about Surveying?
Coming from an educational background in Law, I enjoy the research involved in reviewing a property and applying the case law to then reduce the rateable value through the Challenge part of the CCA process.
Why RVA Surveyors?
I joined as a trainee Surveyor and found that there was ample opportunity to progress, during my interview I was asked where do I see myself in the next 10 years to which I replied – managing my own team and training new surveyors. 5 years on I have managed to achieve that goal which has been very rewarding. Most companies are good to work for but RVA surveyors has always been a good company which strives to become better each year – this is evident in the substantial growth in the last few years and processes adapted to ensure a good work environment.
Established in 2008, RVA Surveyors, a business rates Manchester-based company, who employ over 100 people, are one of the fastest growing business rates reduction specialists in the UK. With industry leading success rates they offer a no reduction no fee service.
