Stop retyping the same RICS observations.
A three-tier library of reusable language: your personal phrases, your firm's shared phrases, and a curated industry preset library. Filter by RICS section, search, click to insert. The AI also reads the loaded phrases as voice and style context — so auto-generated content stays consistent with the voice your firm has built up over years.
Three tiers
Personal · Firm · Industry
Personal phrases
Your own language snippets — the way you describe a sagging gutter, your standard recommendation for an EICR cycle. Yours alone, carry across every report you write.
Firm phrases
Firm-wide phrases shared across the practice — used by every surveyor in your firm to keep voice and tone consistent. Edit centrally; surfaces in every editor.
Industry presets
Curated home.co.uk preset library — common, RICS-aligned phrasing for the standard observations every surveyor writes about ("no defects observed", "remedial works required").
How it works
From first phrase to consistent firm voice.
Create or import
Paste old survey reports or Word documents into the bulk import field. The AI extracts every distinct observation, assigns RICS section codes and saves them to your library in seconds. Or add phrases individually as you write.
Tag to RICS sections
Each phrase is linked to one or more RICS section codes — D1 chimney stacks, E4 floors, F1 electricity, and so on. When you are writing about D2 roof coverings, only your D2 phrases appear in the editor panel.
Insert or dictate
Click to insert a phrase from the side panel inside the Level 2 or Level 3 report editor, or dictate its reference code (SP29, L-04) and the system expands the placeholder into the full phrase text. No copy-pasting between windows.
AI reads your library
When Otto auto-mode or AI Dictation runs, up to 100 of your most relevant phrases are passed to the AI before any content is generated — so it writes in your voice, not a generic one.
Voice and style context
Phrases also teach the AI.
When you run Otto auto-mode or AI Dictation, the system loads up to 100 of your most relevant phrases — personal first, then firm, then industry presets — and passes them to the AI as voice and style context. Otto then shows the receipts: which photos, which dictation, which firm rules went into every wording it proposes.
Promote · personal → firm
A phrase travels when it should.
When a personal phrase is used repeatedly across surveyors, the system flags it for promotion to the firm library. One tap from any senior surveyor approves it for the whole firm — or keeps it personal. House style accumulates from the bottom up, not by committee.
- ●Suggestions surface based on cross-surveyor reuse
- ●Promotion is opt-in — no automatic firm-wide changes
- ●Helps standardise language without forcing it
AI bulk import
Turn your old reports into a phrase library in seconds.
Paste any text — old survey reports, a Word document, a plain-text phrase list — into the bulk import field. The AI analyses the content, extracts every distinct observation, assigns each one a RICS section code and saves them to your library. If your firm uses internal reference codes such as SP1, SP2 or L-001, these are detected and preserved automatically so your existing numbering carries across.
- Maps informal element descriptions to the correct RICS sub-section code (e.g. "flaunching around the pot" → D1 Chimney stacks)
- Preserves variant wordings as separate phrases — surveyors intentionally keep multiple versions of the same observation
- Recovers partial extractions gracefully — if the document is very long, completed phrases are saved even if the run is truncated
- Works with Level 2 and Level 3 phrase scoping — invalid section codes for the chosen level are silently nullified, not discarded
Flaunching around the chimney pot is cracked and loose. Repointing is recommended before the next winter season.
Several slate tiles observed to have slipped from the main roof slope. Repair by a specialist roofing contractor is advised.
The consumer unit contains older-style rewireable fuse carriers. An Electrical Installation Condition Report (EICR) is recommended.
Artex-textured coating to the lounge ceiling may contain chrysotile asbestos. Do not disturb; seek specialist advice before any remedial work.
Phrase code shortcuts
Dictate a code. Get the full phrase.
If your phrases carry internal reference codes — SP1, SP29, L-04, or any other scheme — you can dictate those codes during Otto auto-mode or AI Dictation. The system looks up the matching phrase and substitutes the full content automatically, before any text reaches the report.
Supported reference formats: [SP29], Insert SP29, SP29 bare — all resolved automatically.
From library to final report
How your phrases reach every section of the report.
Whether you click to insert a phrase mid-report or dictate a shortcode on site, the same library powers the result — and it also calibrates the AI before any auto-generated content is written.
Your phrase library
Personal, firm and industry-preset phrases, each tagged to a RICS section code. Built from bulk import or added phrase by phrase as you write.
Dictation with SP codes
Dictate observations and drop in phrase shortcodes (SP29, L-04) as you walk the property. No lookup needed — just say the code.
Otto loads your phrases
Up to 100 phrases are passed to the AI as voice context before any content is drafted. SP codes are resolved to their full phrase text at the same stage.
Consistent final report
Auto-generated sections carry your voice and terminology. Shortcodes are expanded to your approved wording. Every report sounds like your firm.
- 1.Open the Level 2 or Level 3 report editor
- 2.Navigate to the RICS section — e.g. D2 Roof coverings
- 3.Your D2 phrases appear in the side panel, filtered automatically
- 4.Click to insert — or start typing to search for a phrase by keyword
- 1.Dictate on site — include SP codes where you want approved wording
- 2.Submit dictation to Otto auto-mode
- 3.Otto loads up to 100 of your phrases as voice context, resolves SP codes inline
- 4.All sections drafted in your firm style — ready to review and sign off
Getting started
Up and running in under five minutes.
No training period. No configuration. Your industry preset library is available the moment you join.
Paste any old survey report or Word document into the bulk import field. The AI extracts every distinct observation, assigns RICS section codes, and saves them to your library in about 30 seconds.
Open any Level 2 or Level 3 report in the editor. The side panel shows your phrases filtered to whichever RICS section you are currently writing — D2 phrases appear in D2, F1 phrases in F1.
Click to insert a phrase directly, or dictate its reference code on site. The system expands the shortcode into the full phrase text automatically when the report is processed — no retyping in the office.
Join free — your practice's firm-tier phrases and the industry preset library are ready immediately. No credit card required.
Who uses Standard Phrases
The surveyor with 200 phrases in a Word doc.
And the one who doesn't have any yet — the library works at every stage of a surveying career.
Solo practitioners
You have built up years of preferred observations — specific wording for slipped slates, your exact EICR recommendation, the way you phrase an Artex risk notice. Import them once and they appear in the right section panel every time.
Firm principals
Standardise language across two, three or ten surveyors without annual style-guide reviews. Promote agreed phrasing to the firm tier once and it is immediately available to every member of the practice — including inside Otto auto-mode drafts.
New RICS surveyors
No existing phrase library? The industry preset tier is available from day one. Common RICS-aligned observations — "no defects observed", drainage boilerplate, I1–I4 risk notices — give you a professional baseline before you have written a single report of your own.
High-volume practices
When you are turning out ten or more surveys a week, phrase codes (SP29, L-04) dictated on site mean zero lookup time back in the office. The system substitutes the full text automatically — the report gets your precise wording without you retyping it.
APC candidates
Building your phrase library as APC evidence
During your RICS Assessment of Professional Competence, demonstrating mastery of the RICS Home Survey Standard section structure is a core requirement. Organising your personal phrase library by RICS section code — D1–D9 external elements, E1–E9 internal elements, F1–F7 services, G1–G3 grounds, H1–H3 legal matters, I1–I4 risks — is a practical record of that understanding. The act of building and curating a library over your training period also produces a documented timeline of how your surveying language has developed: phrases added from early reports, refined as your practice matures, and promoted to the firm tier when your principal approves them. Section H and I entries are particularly relevant — consistent, principal-approved wording for legal matters and risk notices demonstrates the systematic approach to high-PI-risk content that assessors look for. Your phrase library and import history are stored alongside your reports in your Home.co.uk surveyor account.
Why this is different
Not a Word document. A living library.
Word templates stay static — you search, copy, paste, and forget to update them. The Standard Phrases library grows with every report you write, stays in sync across your firm, and feeds the AI so every auto-generated draft sounds like you.
RICS section filtering — automatic
Open the D2 section and only your D2 roof phrases appear. Move to F1 and only your electrical phrases show. No searching, no scrolling a 200-row Word document — the library surfaces what is relevant to the element you are writing about, right now.
Shared firm library — always in sync
Promote a phrase to the firm tier once and it is immediately available in every surveyor's editor across the practice. No emailing an updated Word document, no version drift between surveyors — one change, everywhere, instantly.
SP codes work during dictation
Say "use SP29" while dictating on site. The system substitutes the full approved phrase text when your report is processed in the office. Your preferred wording reaches the report without you ever typing it — even while you are standing at the property.
Bulk extract from old reports
Paste a 40-page Level 2 survey report and the AI extracts every distinct observation, assigns each to the correct RICS section code, and saves them to your library in about 30 seconds. What would take two hours of manual copying takes less than a minute.
Feeds the AI as voice context
Every Otto auto-mode run loads up to 100 of your phrases — personal first, then firm, then industry presets — as style context before generating any content. Auto-drafted sections sound like your practice, not a generic template from a tool that has never seen a RICS report.
Consistent PI risk — Section H and I approved
Firm-tier phrases for legal matters (Section H) and risk notices (Section I) are approved once by a principal and then used consistently across the practice. When the same defect is described in the same words by every surveyor, there is less scope for a post-exchange query to turn on an ambiguity in phrasing.
In practice
From scattered notes to a living library.
See how surveyors at different career stages put the standard phrases library to work.
"I had a Word document with around 200 phrases built up over the years — different wordings for slipped slates depending on severity, my standard F1 electricity phrasing, the exact text I use for Artex ceilings in Section I3. Getting to the right phrase mid-report meant switching windows and searching the document manually."
"I pasted the whole document into the bulk import field. In about 30 seconds it extracted 183 phrases, tagged each to the right RICS section code — D2 for the slate variations, F1 for the electrical, I3 for the Artex — and saved them all. Now the D2 phrases surface in the side panel while I am writing D2. No window switching at all."
"We had three surveyors writing reports in three slightly different styles. One used 'observed' where another used 'noted'; one wrote 'urgent attention is required' where another wrote 'further investigation by a specialist is advised'. Some clients even commented that reports felt different between surveyors."
"We spent an afternoon standardising our preferred phrases and promoting them to the firm library. Every surveyor in the practice now pulls from the same wording for the standard observations. When Otto auto-mode drafts a section, it reads the firm phrases first — so even AI-drafted content lands in our house style, not a generic one."
Standard phrases are one part of the Home.co.uk surveyor toolkit. See how it connects to Otto auto-mode, AI Dictation, the style profile tool, comparable sales, and the photo AI tool.
Section coverage
Every RICS section. Every subsection.
Phrases can be tagged to any of the 35+ RICS Home Survey section codes across both Level 2 and Level 3 reports. Filter by section in the editor to see only the phrases relevant to the element you are writing about.
D1 Chimneys · D2 Roof coverings · D3 Rainwater pipes · D4 Main walls · D5 Windows · D6 Doors · D7 Conservatories · D8 Other joinery · D9 Other
E1 Roof structure · E2 Ceilings · E3 Walls · E4 Floors · E5 Fireplaces · E6 Built-in fittings · E7 Woodwork · E8 Bathroom fittings · E9 Other
F1 Electricity · F2 Gas/Oil · F3 Water · F4 Heating · F5 Water heating · F6 Drainage · F7 Common services
G1–G3 Grounds · H1 Regulation · H2 Guarantees · H3 Other · I1 Building risks · I2 Grounds risks · I3 People risks · I4 Other risks
J (Surveyor's declaration) · K (What to do now) · L (Service description)
J1–J5 (Energy matters) · Remedial costs short-form / long-form · L (Declaration) · M (What to do now) · N (Service description)
Compound value
A library that gets better with every report.
Unlike a Word template that stays the same year after year, the standard phrases library accumulates value the more it is used — across surveyors, across report types, across time.
Industry presets ready
The curated preset library is available immediately. Every common RICS observation — "no defects observed", standard EPC caveats, drainage boilerplate, typical risk notices for I1–I4 — is already tagged and searchable.
Your voice, catalogued
Paste a few old reports and your personal library grows by dozens or hundreds of phrases. Every element, every observation you have ever written is now searchable and insertable in seconds — including your preferred wording for edge cases.
Firm-wide consistency
When a personal phrase used by multiple surveyors is promoted to the firm library, every surveyor in your practice gains access to it. House style becomes consistent without editorial committees or annual style-guide reviews.
AI output aligns
Every Otto auto-mode run loads up to 100 phrases as style context. As your library grows and is curated, the AI-generated drafts become increasingly aligned with how your firm actually writes — not a generic template.
Standard Phrases vs Word templates vs retyping
| Capability | Standard Phrases | Word templates / retyping |
|---|---|---|
| RICS section filtering | Automatic by section code | Manual — you scroll or search |
| Import from old reports | AI bulk extraction | Copy-paste manually |
| Shared across firm | Firm tier — always in sync | Email updated document |
| Feeds AI auto-mode | Yes — voice calibration | No |
| Dictation shortcodes | SP29, L-04, etc. | Not possible |
| Level 2 / Level 3 scoping | Automatic validation | Separate files manually |
Professional consistency
Consistent RICS language.
Consistent professional opinion.
Post-survey queries and professional indemnity disputes often hinge on precise wording. When surveyors at the same firm describe identical defects differently — one writes "urgent attention required", another "further investigation recommended" — clients and solicitors can interpret them as different professional opinions, even when the condition rating is the same.
Firm-tier standard phrases ensure approved wording for section H legal matters and section I risk notices is consistent across the practice. Individual professional judgement is preserved for condition ratings and descriptive commentary — the part that actually varies. The boilerplate doesn't.
- Firm-approved wording for section H (legal matters) and section I (risk notices) — where consistency matters most
- Personal phrases let each surveyor retain their voice for descriptive commentary while sharing boilerplate caveats
- Opt-in phrase promotion means wording only becomes firm-wide when a senior surveyor explicitly approves it
"The property has been extended. We were unable to confirm from documents provided whether planning permission and building regulations approval were obtained for all works. The purchasing solicitor should verify this prior to exchange of contracts."
"Artex-textured coatings are present and may contain asbestos. The ceiling should not be disturbed. We recommend a specialist asbestos survey prior to any remedial works or redecoration."
- Clients receiving different advice from different surveyors at the same firm
- Solicitors querying why wording differs between two reports on similar properties
- Post-exchange disputes where report language is interpreted as guidance rather than opinion
FAQ
Common questions
How do I import my existing phrase library?
Can I share phrases with colleagues at my firm?
How does the AI use my phrases when generating report content?
What RICS sections can phrases be tagged to?
Can I dictate phrase codes to insert phrases automatically?
How does the bulk extraction handle different surveyor phrase formats?
Does the library work with both Level 2 and Level 3 reports?
Is there a limit to how many phrases I can store?
How is the standard phrases library different from the style profile tool?
What if I am starting from scratch with no existing phrase library?
How do I set up standard phrases for a new surveyor joining the firm?
Can I access or insert standard phrases on a mobile device at the inspection?
How does a consistent phrase library help with professional indemnity risk?
What is a standard phrase library in property surveying?
Can standard phrases help demonstrate RICS compliance in reports?
How long does it take to build a working phrase library from existing survey reports?
Can I use standard phrases alongside the RICS Home Survey Standard check tool?
Can building a standard phrase library support my RICS APC competency evidence?
What is the fastest way to build a working phrase library for Level 2 RICS report writing?
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