John has 37+ years in Private Practice Building Surveying & Architecture. Commercial Property & Development. Based in York and mainly working in Yorkshire, John also works with property elsewhere in the UK as well as mainland Europe. Let's meet John
Choose a career in Surveying and you choose your own path and can specialise in whatever suits you best.
Surveying is an interesting and varied career. What made you decide to specialise in building surveying
At school I was good at Art, Geography, Maths, CDT and tech drawing but focused too much on beer & girls in 6th form and messed up my A levels missing out on the university place I wanted. So I went to tech college instead and started my career with a HND as an Architectural Technician working in Architects practices in York and London on everything from private homes, schools, churches, to cathedrals and shopping centres.
A varied and interesting career but not very rewarding and with a glass ceiling without being a registered Architect. In my mid 20’s I shared an office with David Brown, a chartered building surveyor, David encouraged me to start a day release degree at Sheffield Polytechnic. Midway through my degree I moved jobs to Knight Frank and worked with several senior Chartered Building Surveyors, qualifying MRICS in 1994 when I was thrust into the interesting and varied world of commercial real estate.
With my Architectural background I was able to specialise in design and contract admin as the project leader. I later went into Partnership followed by my own business specialising in development, planning and architecture for new build and refurbishment alongside more traditional commercial building surveying with a strong and loyal client base.
You recently shared that you faced a serious health issue 10 years ago and feared it might end your career. What happened, and what were your main issues at that time?
I simply woke up one Sunday morning confused and unable to move or speak, my wife phoned 999 and I was rushed to A&E, I don’t remember anything much about the day but it turned out that I had been resuscitated minutes from death following a severe stroke in my sleep due to a random and, to-date, unexplained blood clot that caused permanent damage to the right side of my brain. It was a complete shock as I was aged 47 normal weight, reasonably fit and active non-smoker but probably worked too hard.
My immediate issues were trying to recover, undertaking physio and speech therapy. I can only liken it to being a baby, being helped to the toilet, being washed and fed, learning to try and stand then balance and take a first step, then just another. My speech and cognition returned within weeks which was when the realisation came that it would be a very long road to recovery and that there would be a huge impact on my wife and children suddenly having a disabled dad to care for. What I was not prepared for was the impact on my mental health resulting in anxiety and depression. Even after 10 years I don’t think the psychological effects will ever leave me.
What motivated you to keep pushing forward, especially when others might have chosen to walk away?
My immediate reaction was that I would have to retire, but I had a young family to support as well as employees and clients reliant on my business continuing.
After leaving hospital I was still pretty much immobile, sat in an armchair day-after-day but there are only so many hours of homes under the hammer a surveyor can bear! For my sanity, I had to do something positive and got back to working at home from my laptop, I found that I could run a business but my abilities were limited and I was making some poor decisions and realised I would not be able to continue in the same way so I slowly managed the closure and liquidation of the business to ensure that all creditors were paid and staff were given time to find suitable (probably better) jobs.
I decided to take some time off for myself and with the help of mates just over 2 years later I achieved my previous mid-life crisis idea of cycling from York to Lucca in Tuscany – I had previously expected that to be on a two wheeler but it was completed on three with a bit of e-assist to get through the Alps- along with copious amounts of Weissbier & Schnitzel!
After 3 years of self-care travelling and mucking about with mates I obviously got bored and was getting skint, so with client demand I set up again as a sole-trader working part-time doing pretty much the same job I have since I was 20, designing, adapting and extending buildings of all types, sorting out dilapidations, party wall and independent ‘expert’ advice, for individuals, investors’ developers and businesses. What is different is that I have a much more relaxed approach and I rely much more on tech, from CAD to drones, voice recognition etc. I can’t see where AI will come to my aid but old dog, new tricks eh!
I remain constantly gratified and amazed, in equal measure, that clients old and new have faith in my abilities despite my obvious physical limitations. I will never climb a ladder or scaffold again (but recently braved a cherry picker!) but using drones and getting others to take photos for me allows me to use my experience and judgement. But I do miss using my hands to get the ‘feel’ of things, rubbing the grain of bits of stone, feeling a bit of damp plaster or timber, and other sad things old building surveyors like to do!
What recommendations or resources can you suggest to help SMEs plan and prepare for unforeseen circumstances that might require stepping away from work for an extended period? Is there any way RICS can provide support?
I was very lucky to have a large critical illness insurance policy which paid out immediately, but on reflection an income protection policy would have paid out annually till I was back on my feet but I am not sure which is best. Not very well known is a Waiver of Premium clause in your pension will continue to pay your monthly contribution wen you can’t (by the time I retire I think this may have added roughly £200K to my pension pot) I am also lucky that over the years I have made a lot of friends in the industry so I was able to call on help from freelance colleagues when I needed it (fortuitously, my best-man, a QS had just quit as a director and set up as a sole-trader and could jump in to help me as well as get a kick-start for his new business).
For SME’s it is absolutely essential to have some form of insurance in place, critical illness, income protection, or business interruption. So take advice as to what is best and most cost-effective for your circumstances. It is also well worth having a reciprocal arrangement with a similar firm or individual to step in and help in the event of unforeseen circumstances.
For anybody: treat everyone well and with respect when you are on the way up, there are countless rewards when you are in need. It’s an old cliché, I know, but life can be short, make the most of your health and make every day count. Which I intend to continue doing…….
RICS were extremely unhelpful to me when I was struggling to sort out subscription and CPD exemptions but LionHeart were there to help step in and sort it out. So RICS could do to look at their procedures and simplify ill-health concessions.
Looking back, what would you say to your 10-year younger self during those challenging times?
Listen to your friends and family, and the medics - they know best!
Let's talks about the future: in your opinion, what is the future of surveying and how can it attract the next generation?
I hadn’t heard of a building surveyor till I met one at work. So wider publicity is key, especially at pre/post GCSE careers advice to emphasise what a varied and great job it is. My job(s) have taken me to all corners of the UK, Europe as far as the Greek islands. I have surveyed cathedrals, castles, stately homes as well as oil refineries, steelworks, offices, hospitals, schools and universities. I have designed, built and refurbished countless houses, flats, shops and offices. As a surveyor you can be in Jeans and rigger boots climbing down a hole to talk to a groundworker about sorting a drain problem and within the hour have your suit and shiny shoes back on and be negotiating a multi-million pounds contract, or helping a lawyer navigate a complex litigation or dilapidations case. Last year I was simultaneously working on behalf of a vulnerable tenant and a wealthy government minister, clients come in all shapes and sizes. Choose a career in Surveying and you choose your own path and can specialise in whatever suits you best- follow your conscience, or the money but ideally there is a balance between the two.
RICS really need to re-look at non-professional entry routes. It’s relatively easy for an academic to obtain MRICS as compared to a tradesperson with years of practical knowledge and experience. Having interviewed, employed and worked alongside many building surveyors over the last 30 years, the best and most useful to your firm and clients are the ex-tradespeople and technicians. So let’s make their life a little easier. (the stonemason, roofer and joiner know who they are, and what I’m talking about) You don’t need a great degree from university to be a building surveyor but you do need a great degree of common sense(sorry 😉)
How can myRICS Community support surveyors?
I’m a newbie to myRICS community but finding it a great forum to share ideas and experiences with others which is especially useful as a sole-practitioner having other surveyors to inspire you and bounce questions and ideas around to support one-another