West Sussex has many period stately homes including Goodwood, Petworth House and Uppark and also castles such as Arundel Castle and Bramber Castle. Crawley is its largest town even though Chichester, with its fine cathedral, is the county town. There are large towns on the coast as well, including Worthing and Bognor Regis.

Crawley and the towns nearer London generally developed greatly during the 19th century when the railway arrived. Most often, these towns have some period properties but the majority of housing will have been built in the 20th century, particularly the 1920s to the 1950s, and often, much redevelopment will have taken place in the 1960s and 1970s. Newer developments either replace much older properties or are on the fringes of the towns' borders.

The seaside towns such as Worthing will have greatly expanded in the 19th century and the original Victorian detached houses, terrace houses and cottages will often still be standing. Development generally carried on steadily throughout the 20th century and into the 21st century.

You are more likely to find older period properties back to the medieval period in the smaller villages and hamlets, such as Hurstpierpoint, Lindfield, Pulborough and Storrington. New build developments tend to concentrate in the more urban areas.

Survey Tip 1	Survey Tip 2	Survey Tip 3
Properties in West Sussex which are built close to the coast or large water courses such as the Rivers Adur, Mole, Lavant, Ems, Arun and Wey among others, are subject to flood warnings and alerts from time to time. If you are concerned that a property you are looking to buy is in a flood risk area, you should consider getting a flood risk report (click for more details).	A recent Environmental Search stated that a property in Westloats Gardens, Bognor Regis, West Sussex, PO21 5LG, was within 4km of a well used for energy exploration or extraction. Any areas to be explored for their energy potential by the oil & gas industry must be licensed by the Department for Energy and Climate Change. Such exploration includes areas subject to hydraulic fracturing ("fracking") investigation.	West Sussex – Ground Stability A recent Environmental Search for a property in Westloats Gardens, Bognor Regis, West Sussex, PO21 5LG, stated that the dwelling was within250m for ground instability relating to non-coal mining. The British Geological Survey has assessed that hazards because of underground non-coal mine workings in this area are highly unlikely. It should be noted that there is always the possibility of excavations that are outside of the scope of this dataset which could affect ground stability.

We have local RICS surveyors who specialise in listed building surveys in West Sussex. To find out more got to - Listed Building Surveys - Building Surveyor and Survey Cost in West Sussex