Can I create my own party wall agreement?

“Party wall agreement” is not a document the Act asks you to draft. The Act works through notices, the neighbour’s response and, if there is a dispute, a Party Wall Award made by surveyors. So “creating your own agreement” really means one of two things: serving your own notices and getting written consent, or agreeing terms informally with your neighbour. The first is lawful and common. The second is fine as a friendly record, but it does not replace the Act’s procedure.

What you can lawfully do yourself

• Check whether the Act applies. Work on the boundary (s.1), work to a party wall or party structure (s.2) and excavation near a neighbour’s building (s.6) are covered. Minor works such as shelves, replastering, rewiring and minor chases for sockets and wiring are not.
• Identify every owner. Owners include freeholders and leaseholders with more than a year left (s.20). HM Land Registry title registers cost a few pounds each and avoid serving the wrong person.
• Write and serve the notices. There is no official form. A notice must contain what the Act requires; see our free notice templates and the GOVPUBLINK. You can serve by hand or by post, or by email only if the neighbour has agreed to accept it (s.15).
• Record the neighbour’s consent. Written consent to a section 3 or section 6 notice means there is no dispute. Keep the signed reply with your copy of the notice. Our party wall agreement template includes a consent wording you can use.
• Record the condition of next door. You can take your own dated photographs with the neighbour’s permission. A professional Schedule of Condition is more reliable, but a careful joint photo record is far better than nothing.

Where DIY stops: disputes and Awards

If the neighbour dissents, or does not respond within 14 days (s.5, s.6(7)), a dispute is deemed to have arisen and s.10 applies. The owners must either concur in appointing one Agreed Surveyor, or appoint a surveyor each. The Act defines a surveyor as a person who is not a party to the matter (s.20), so neither owner can act as surveyor in their own dispute. The Act does not require a particular qualification, but in practice you want someone who does this work every week, ideally a member of the Faculty of Party Wall Surveyors.

A home-made document signed by both neighbours after a dispute has arisen is not an Award. It may record goodwill, but it does not give either owner the protection of the Act’s dispute procedure, and if things go wrong it is far harder to rely on.

DIY versus using a surveyor

The risks of going it alone

• An invalid notice. A notice with the wrong section, the wrong owners or too short a period is not a valid notice. Consent given in response may be challenged, and the notice period may have to restart.
• No record of condition. Without a Schedule of Condition, cracks that were already there can be blamed on your work, and genuine new damage can be disputed.
• Starting too early. Work to a party wall before the notice period has run, or before an Award where there is a dispute, is work outside the Act. See what happens if you start work without notice.
• Sale problems later. Buyers’ solicitors ask for the notice and the consent or Award. Loose paperwork slows a sale; see selling a house during party wall works.

A sensible middle route

Many owners talk to the neighbour first, then let a surveyor prepare and serve the formal notices, which costs £150 + VAT with us for all your neighbours. If the neighbour consents subject to a Schedule of Condition, notices plus a Schedule is £499 + VAT. If there is a dispute, our full package with an Agreed Surveyor Award is £899 + VAT (£999 + VAT in London); the Agreed Surveyor supplement is £50, currently waived. Fees are fixed and invoiced on completion.

Checklist if you do it yourself

• Confirm the sections that apply and the notice period for each.
• Get title registers for your property and every neighbour’s.
• Use a notice that contains everything the Act requires, with drawings where needed.
• Serve correctly and keep proof of service and copies.
• Diary the 14-day response date; silence is a dispute, not consent.
• If there is a dispute, appoint a surveyor, and do not start that work until the Award is served.
• Keep the notice, consent or Award with your property records.

Costs with us

Domestic extensions and loft conversions. Fixed fees, invoiced on completion; we take enquiries only, with no online payment. If your neighbour appoints their own surveyor, the building owner normally pays that surveyor’s reasonable fees as well (s.10(13)), and those are set by that surveyor, not by us.

How we can help

We have handled party wall matters on more than 750 projects across London, the South East and the Midlands. Our qualified surveyors prepare valid notices, Schedules of Condition and Awards on fixed fees, invoiced on completion, and can act as Agreed Surveyor for both owners. Call free on 08000 487897, take the 1-minute check or see our fixed fees. More short answers: party wall agreement questions answered.

This guide is general information on the Party Wall etc. Act 1996, which applies in England and Wales. It is written from our surveyors’ practical experience and is not legal advice; for a specific dispute, take advice on your own facts.

Sources: Party Wall etc. Act 1996 (legislation.gov.uk) · The Party Wall etc. Act 1996: explanatory booklet (GOV.UK). Last reviewed 29 October 2026. General guidance on the law in England and Wales, not legal advice.