Name: Jason Antill
Job title: Founder and managing director, PRE Chartered Surveyors
What I do: I founded PRE Chartered Surveyors and lead an independent multi-disciplinary consultancy practice providing over 20 specialist services across measured surveys, building surveying, project management and sustainability. Over the past few years we’ve restructured the business into dedicated divisions, appointed heads of those divisions and recently launched a new website to make it much easier for clients to understand what we do. My role today is less about doing everything myself and more about building the business, developing the team and making sure PRE continues to thrive long into the future.
Why I got into the property industry: I never really chose property – it chose me. My father was a surveyor/developer and, from a young age, he would take me out on surveys during school holidays and weekends. While most children were on football pitches, I was walking around all types of buildings, climbing through roof spaces and learning how buildings worked. Looking back, those days sparked a fascination that has never left me.
How I did it: I certainly didn’t have a master plan. In 2008, I was working as a young asset manager for a bank in the City of London. If I’m honest, I wasn’t a particularly good asset manager! When redundancy came during the financial crisis, my father mentioned at the kitchen table that Energy Performance Certificates (EPCs) were about to become a legal requirement. I took a gamble and invested my redundancy payment in qualifying as an EPC assessor with the RICS.
Around the same time I read The 4-Hour Work Week. The idea of creating a business that gave you freedom rather than simply another job really resonated with me. I wasn’t chasing a four-hour week – I was inspired by the idea of building something of my own. Money was tight. I rented out the spare rooms in the recently purchased house before redundancy to help pay the mortgage and turned my bedroom into PRE’s first HQ office. Every pound I earned went back into growing the business.
We started with EPCs, but I quickly realised clients wanted more than a single service. Rather than standing still, we kept evolving – adding one discipline at a time. Today, PRE provides more than 20 specialist services across measurement, building surveying, project management and sustainability. Looking back, redundancy was the best thing that ever happened to me. It forced me to take a chance on myself.
My first proper job: Working in commercial property in London, where I quickly realised that success isn’t just about technical knowledge – it’s about relationships, trust and always doing what you say you’re going to do.
My first big break: Ironically, losing my job in 2008. It certainly didn’t feel like a lucky break at the time, but without redundancy PRE probably wouldn’t exist.
My inspiration(s): My father gave me my introduction to surveying, but I’ve also learned the importance of seeking advice from others. Early in my career I found a mentor who challenged my thinking and encouraged me to look beyond the next project. Even today, I work with a business coach to challenge my ideas and help me see things from a different perspective. No matter how experienced you become, I don’t think you should ever stop learning.
The biggest challenge I’ve encountered to date: People often see the successes but not the decisions behind them. Being a managing director can be surprisingly lonely. Ultimately, you’re the one who has to make the difficult decisions – sometimes decisions that not everyone will agree with – but that’s part of leading a business. Over the years we’ve navigated the global financial crisis, Brexit, Covid-19 and now a rapidly changing world shaped by inflation, geopolitical uncertainty and artificial intelligence. Every challenge has required us to adapt and rethink how we work.
One of the conscious decisions I’ve made is to keep PRE relatively small. That’s not because I lack ambition – it’s because I believe a smaller, agile business can move faster, stay closer to its clients and give people greater responsibility earlier in their careers. It won’t suit everyone; some people thrive in larger corporate organisations. But for those who enjoy variety, autonomy and making a real impact, it’s a fantastic environment. Leadership isn’t about getting every decision right. It’s about making the best decision you can with the information you have at the time, standing by it and learning from it.
My greatest achievement/proudest moment to date: Building PRE from a bedroom office into a multidisciplinary consultancy based in Soho is something I’m incredibly proud of, but the business has never just been about buildings. Tara was my first employee and, many years later, she’s still with PRE. That loyalty means a huge amount to me.
Over the years we’ve supported more than 10 young people through their university degrees and APC, helping them achieve MRICS status while working with us. Seeing those individuals flourish in their careers is one of the most rewarding parts of what I do. Every now and then one of them calls to instruct PRE on a project from their new employer, and that’s a real full-circle moment.
Supporting the next generation has always been important to me. I was one of the founders of the Built Environment Mentoring Scheme at Oxford Brookes University, which has helped hundreds of students. I later had the privilege of serving as chair of the alumni, and being invited back to deliver the graduation address to the university’s built environment graduates was a genuine honour.
Outside the business, I’m also proud to have founded PropSail as part of PropEvents, now in its seventh year, helping raise tens of thousands of pounds for the Ellen MacArthur Cancer Trust. Professionally, becoming a Fellow of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (FRICS) is an achievement I’m immensely proud of. To be recognised by my peers at that level is a real honour. I was also incredibly honoured that PRE was recognised by the University of the Built Environment as Best SME Apprenticeship Employer 2026. For me, that award wasn’t just recognition for the business – it recognised our commitment to investing in the next generation of surveyors.
The biggest misconception people have about the property industry: That surveyors just produce reports or sell residential buildings. In reality, we’re trusted advisers. We solve problems, reduce risk, save clients money and help shape the built environment.
My biggest bugbear about the industry/the one thing I would change about the industry: We’re brilliant at what we do, but not always brilliant at telling people about it. Surveying is one of the most varied and rewarding professions available, yet too few young people know it exists. We need to do a better job of promoting the profession and inspiring the next generation. I think Nick Maclean the president of the RICS is doing a great job to reconnect members and the next generation.
Why I’m so passionate about DE&I: I believe talent is everywhere, but opportunity isn’t always. Our profession will only continue to thrive if we attract and support people from every background. Supporting the next generation has been a constant throughout my career. I was one of the founders of the Built Environment Mentoring Scheme at Oxford Brookes University, which has helped hundreds of students gain mentoring and confidence as they begin their careers. I also had the privilege of serving as chair of the alumni.
Today, I’m a member of the DE&I committee of the Worshipful Company of Chartered Surveyors and a trustee, where we support initiatives including a bursary scheme to help widen access to the surveying profession. At PRE we’ve also helped more than 10 young people achieve MRICS, supporting them through their university degrees and APC while they worked with us. Watching those individuals flourish in their careers – and sometimes return years later to instruct PRE – is one of the most rewarding parts of what I do. For me, DE&I isn’t a policy or a box-ticking exercise. It’s about creating opportunities, opening doors and helping people realise their potential.
Why I’m so passionate about ESG: The greenest building is often the one that’s already standing. Surveyors have a vital role in helping clients extend the life of existing buildings, improve efficiency and make better long-term decisions for both the environment and their assets. The new MEES regulations are now putting pressure on landlords to take action.
Where I’d like to be in five years’ time career-wise: I’d like PRE to continue growing as one of the UK’s leading independent surveying consultancies, but success for me isn’t simply about becoming bigger. I’m spending more time working on the business rather than in it – building a leadership team, investing in people and creating a company that can thrive long after I’m no longer running it day to day.
If, one day, someone else takes over the business and PRE continues to flourish for many years to come, I’d consider that a real success. Just as importantly, I want PRE to continue developing the next generation of surveyors. There are few things more rewarding than watching someone join as an apprentice or graduate, grow into a confident chartered surveyor and eventually become a leader in our profession. I’ve always believed in employing people who are better than me. My role is to give them the opportunity, support and responsibility to succeed. Surrounding myself with talent is was makes PRE successful.
Who I’d invite, living or dead, to a dinner party: My father, because I’d love to show him what grew from those weekends he spent taking me out on surveys. I’d also invite Sir Richard Branson for his relentless innovation, James Cook for his extraordinary leadership under pressure, and Sir Russell Coutts for his wisdom and perspective.
What I do in my downtime: You’ll usually find me on the water. I’m passionate about sailing, whether that’s racing in the Solent or cruising further afield. Sailing teaches preparation, teamwork, resilience and decision-making under pressure – lessons that apply just as much in business as they do at sea.
The job I’d be doing if I wasn’t doing this: Something involving the sea. I love boats, navigation and the challenge of sailing, so I suspect I’d have found a career somewhere in the sail GP racing circuit.
My advice for someone just starting out: Stay curious and never become complacent. Look for a business need and ask yourself how you can do it better – you don’t have to reinvent the wheel to build a successful business. Find great mentors, listen more than you speak and don’t be afraid to take calculated risks. My career only really began when I took one. Most importantly, invest in your reputation. It takes years to build and only moments to lose.
My motto/mantra: Take calculated risks. Never become complacent, and always leave things better than you found them.
