Valuation surprise

worriedfirsttimebuyer

Thank you - that news has really cheered me up!

silvercar

From what you've said you haven't got damp you just need a damp course! Totally different things - if you don't get a damp course put in you risk getting damp.

suki1964

And surveys done by building societies are not exactly thorough. When we bought this house the survey said the kitchen window needed replacing as the frame was rotted. What the survey had missed was that the whole of the back wall was soaking and the floor was under water due to a patio being built 6 inches above the damp proof course

inmypocketnottheirs

worriedfirsttimebuyer wrote:

so who answers all my silly questions...?

We do!!!

I would get your local yeallow pages or look on https://www.findacraftsman.com (the website of the Guild of Master Craftsmen and look under Damp Proofing and get three quotes.

Just reverting back to when you made the offer, it is normal to make it on the basis of 'subject to survey' this gives you the opportunity to come back on the owner should anything such as you have experienced i.e. valuation or any remedial work come to light.

The basis of your offer of £111,000 was if this valuation 'stacked up' and there were no material defects on the property. Well, the offer fails on these two counts, thus meaning you can now re-negotiate.

I would wait until you have the reports and quotes from the Damp Proofing companies, then with a copy of the survey go to the agent and tell them the score. It is up to them to negotiate the deal for you, they don't get paid unless a sale proceeds.

All the best, and hope this helps!

Dijor

Hi.

Sorry to hear your quandry. I'm afraid this situation does arise all too often,especially in the current market. I work for a surveyor who also owns an estate agency chain. Unfortunately, property is fairly regularly over-priced, mainly by corporate agents desperate to get houses onto the market through themselves. The fact that the surveyor stated within the report that the house urgently needs a damp proof course shouldn't worry you too much. Getting quotes for undertaking the work should be free but it is definately worth getting three quotes as they can differ hugely. Just make sure whoever you get out is a member of the BWPDA which is what lenders quite often look for. Also, if the estate agents went back to the vendor and told him that a damp proof course was needed, a reduction in the price should be possible. It all depends on how much interest was shown in the house and whether several people were lined up to purchase. If a property is down-valued, you can try to gather your own evidence of sales of similar property in the same location but it will need to be actual selling prices rather than how much they are on the market for, the two are quite different! You can look up yourself how much property has sold for in a location by logging on to https://www.nethouseprices.com which is a great website. Anyone can use it for free. We use it all the time for gathering evidence of recent sales transactions.

Hope this has been of some use, house-selling and buying is a nightmare and soon to get much worse with the introduction of the Home Information Packs.

Good Luck!

worriedfirsttimebuyer

Thanks again for all the further advice. We have asked an damp expert to check out the damp and provide a quote for any work that needs doing if necessary. We will get another quote after this too.
We have told the estate agent about the undervaluation and they are asking the seller for a reduction, so hopefully all will be well.
This site is a godsend, it really is.