What it is worth
Building valuation
There is no price list on this page, and there will not be one. What there is instead is an honest account of what we look at, so you can work out for yourself roughly where your building sits before you send anything.
Why we publish no figures
Every used building is a one-off. Two units of identical size, from the same manufacturer, made in the same year, can be worth entirely different amounts because one has a sound floor and the other does not. A price list cannot express that, so a price list would mislead you.
There is a second reason, and it is less flattering to the trade. A published figure is a negotiating device. Quote a range on a website, get the enquiry, then explain on inspection why this particular building sits at the bottom of it. We would rather not start a relationship that way.
No figure can be given without photographs. Not a rough one, not a starting point, not a guide. Anyone offering a number over the phone before seeing the building is either guessing or planning to revise it later.
The factors
What moves the number
Roughly in order of influence. The first two decide most enquiries on their own, and the rest adjust the figure around them.
| Factor | What we look at | Effect on the figure |
|---|---|---|
| Condition | Floor deck, frame squareness, chassis corrosion, roof and any history of water ingress. Cosmetic wear is noted and largely discounted. | The dominant factor. Sound structure with a scruffy interior holds its value; a smart interior over a failed floor does not. |
| Liftability | Whether designed lifting points are present, undamaged and usable, and whether the structure will survive being picked up and set down. | Effectively a gate rather than a slider. A building that cannot be lifted safely cannot be bought at any figure. |
| Size and bay count | External dimensions, and for modular blocks the number of bays and how they are linked together. | Larger and multi-bay buildings are worth more in total but cost more to move. Very small and very wide units both narrow the resale market. |
| Specification and fit-out | Glazing, heating, electrical provision, flooring, sanitaryware, partition layout and general finish standard. | A properly specified unit lifts the figure. Heavily customised fit-out can lower it, because the next buyer usually wants something general. |
| Building type | Office, classroom, welfare, messing, sleeping accommodation, store, clinic or a converted variant of any of them. | Follows demand. Offices and teaching accommodation move most consistently; single-purpose conversions move slowest. |
| Age | Manufacture date where known, and the construction method behind it. | A weaker factor than most people assume, and a proxy for condition rather than a factor in itself. A maintained older building beats a neglected newer one. |
| Documentation | Original drawings, layout plans, electrical certification, lifting details and service records. | Raises the figure because it makes the unit easier to resell. The next buyer can be told exactly what they are getting. |
| Location and access | Distance from our base, the route in, standing position for the vehicle, ground bearing and any overhead obstruction. | A cost line rather than a judgement on the building. Difficult access can cost more than the extra miles ever do. |
| Quantity | How many buildings, whether they stand on one site, and the order they can be extracted in. | Several units on one site improve the figure per building, because the transport is planned as one operation rather than several. |
| Current demand | What is being asked for at the time, what is already in the yard, and what is arriving from other jobs. | The factor nobody likes, and a real one. The same building is worth more when there is a buyer waiting than when four identical units are already standing. |
Getting an accurate figure
What to send
Most people send a couple of photographs and a postcode, and that is genuinely enough to start with. The list below is not a set of conditions — it is what helps us give a firmer figure first time, and we will ask if we need anything else.
Useful if you can get it
- The whole building from a distance. Shows the line of the roof, whether it sits square and how it stands on its base.
- All four corners. Corners are where water gets in and where damage from previous lifts shows first.
- The roof. From a window, an adjacent building or anywhere safe. Never climb onto it for us.
- The floor. One room or all of them. The floor decides more than anything else.
- Underneath, if you can do it safely. The chassis is the one part nobody photographs and the one part we most want to see.
- The route in from the road. Gateways, bends, overheads and the ground the lorry would stand on.
Do not do this
- Send only the good side. The bad corner is going to be found eventually, and finding it later is what changes a figure.
- Tidy up before photographing the damage. We are pricing the unit, not the housekeeping.
- Wait until you have the full set. Two or three pictures are enough to start. Rough dimensions help, but an approximate size is better than no enquiry.
- Leave out the units you think are worthless. Mixed batches are assessed unit by unit and some surprises go in your favour.
- Wait for it to get worse. Buildings standing idle deteriorate. The figure only goes one way while you think about it.
After the figure
What happens next
-
A figure and what it covers
Given in writing, with the lift, the transport and the payment terms set out so there is nothing to interpret later.
-
More pictures if something needs them
On larger blocks and awkward access we will ask for a few more photographs rather than book a survey and hold your programme up.
-
A date we control
Booked against our own vehicle rather than a subcontractor's diary. Disconnection of services is arranged by you beforehand.
-
Bank transfer on collection
Unless something different has been agreed in writing first. The building leaves, the money moves, and the site is clear.
Common questions
Valuation, asked and answered
Why will you not publish even a rough price range?
Because any range wide enough to be honest would be useless, and any range narrow enough to be useful would be wrong. Two buildings of identical size and age can be worth completely different amounts depending on floor condition, fit-out and access. Publishing a figure would only set an expectation we would then have to take back.
What is the single biggest factor?
Condition, and within condition the floor and the frame. Everything cosmetic is cheap and predictable to put right, so worn flooring and faded paint barely move the number. Structure is a different matter entirely, because once a floor deck or a chassis has gone the repair costs more than the finished building is worth. A unit that is straight, dry and lifts cleanly starts from a strong position no matter how tatty it looks inside.
Does age matter much on its own?
Less than people expect. Age is a proxy for condition rather than a factor in itself, and it is a poor one. A well-maintained older building beats a neglected newer one every time. Condition, size and whether it can be lifted safely all count for far more.
What photographs do you actually need?
Whatever you have. Most people send two or three and that is enough to start the conversation. If you are taking them anyway, the useful ones are the whole building from a distance, the corners, the floor, the roof from anywhere safe and the way in from the road. If something we need is missing we will ask for it rather than guess at it.
Will the figure change on the day of collection?
It should not, provided the photographs were representative. That is the whole reason we would rather see the awkward ones. Where a figure changes it is nearly always because something was not shown, most often a floor that had gone or access that was narrower than described. Show us the worst of it up front and the figure stands.
Does it help to have several buildings rather than one?
Usually. Several buildings on one site mean the transport is planned as a single operation rather than a series of separate trips, and the cost per unit falls. That improves what we can pay. It is also why mixed batches often work out better than selling the good units and paying separately to clear the rest.
Photographs first, figure second
Six or seven honest photographs and a postcode are enough. You get a real number rather than a range designed to be revised once somebody has seen the unit.