JSBC Consulting prepares dilapidation reports across Sydney and greater NSW — detailed, engineer-prepared condition surveys that record the state of neighbouring properties and public infrastructure before your construction, demolition or excavation works begin. Because we are qualified structural engineers, our reports directly satisfy the common Development Application (DA) consent condition that a dilapidation survey be prepared by a suitably qualified engineer.
In Sydney, a dilapidation report is most often required as a condition of Development Application (DA) consent. Councils across the eastern suburbs, inner west, North Sydney and beyond routinely make a pre-construction dilapidation survey of adjoining properties a standard condition of approval — particularly where the works involve:
If your consent conditions call for a dilapidation report “prepared by a suitably qualified engineer,” JSBC Consulting satisfies that requirement directly.
Many dilapidation reports are prepared by general building inspectors. JSBC Consulting is a firm of registered structural and façade engineers, which means our reports carry the weight your consent condition — and any future dispute — demands. We not only document existing cracks and defects, we understand the structural risk your excavation poses to adjoining properties, and we can advise on shoring, underpinning and rectification if issues arise. Should a dispute over alleged damage occur, an engineer-prepared, methodical baseline record is far more defensible.
We prepare dilapidation reports across the Sydney metropolitan area — including the Eastern Suburbs, Inner West, North Shore, Northern Beaches, Sutherland Shire, Hills District, Parramatta and Greater Western Sydney — and throughout New South Wales. Our office is in Burwood, centrally located for jobs across Sydney.
> A dilapidation report is a formal survey that records the existing condition of a property — including cracks, movement and defects — before nearby construction, demolition or excavation begins. It creates a dated baseline so that if damage occurs during the works, there is clear evidence of what pre-existed. It’s also called a pre-construction condition survey.
> Sydney councils commonly make a dilapidation survey of adjoining properties a condition of Development Application consent to protect neighbours from construction damage — especially for excavation, basement and demolition works. The condition usually requires the report to be prepared by a suitably qualified engineer and completed before site works start.
> Almost always, yes. Excavation and basement works close to a boundary risk ground movement and subsidence on neighbouring land, so councils routinely require a dilapidation report of adjoining properties before work begins — typically where excavation exceeds about 1.5 metres or involves retaining walls, shoring or underpinning.
> When a report is required as a condition of development consent, the builder or developer carrying out the works typically pays. The report covers the adjoining/neighbouring properties that could be affected, not just the development site.
> Before any construction, demolition or excavation begins. The purpose is to capture the condition of neighbouring properties in their original state, so the survey must be completed and lodged (where required) prior to works starting. A post-construction survey is often done afterwards to compare.
> Cost depends on the number and size of the adjoining properties surveyed and the scope of the works. JSBC provides a fixed-fee proposal once we know your site and consent conditions.
> Yes. Beyond the dilapidation report, JSBC Consulting provides structural design, shoring and deep excavation design and site inspections — so the same engineering team that documents the neighbouring properties can also design and inspect your works.
