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Help required regarding survey report. What do I do now??

purchaser_2
Posts: 2 Newbie
I have received my survey report back and am looking for advice on what to do next. A retention of £2000 has been placed on the mortgage due to problems with the gable end (lateral strapping), the party wall separation in the roof space needs improving and a damp proof course is needed. The report also mentions that the roof undulates slightly. I am a first time buyer and would just like to know if it is worth going ahead with the purchase and would i be realistic in asking the seller to meet the cost?
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Get a builder in to do a quote and renegotiate the purchase price. Do you have a float set aside to complete the works? If you want a hassle-free property, rent or buy a new build.Declutterbug-in-progress.⭐️⭐️⭐️ ⭐️⭐️0
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Thanks for the response. I don't have much money set aside to cover the costs, but could probably afford to contribute. I don't mind the hassle of investigating the matters further, but as I don't have any experience, I was wondering if the survey findings would make others more in the know, back out?0
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Mine was the same, 2 grand retention, Damp course and something else which i can't remember! I could have got her down but it wouldnt be any help as i needed the money in cash to do the jobs if you get what i mean. So I Asked her to give me 2 grand baisically which she declined but said she would pay 1000 so i said no and let her sleep on it, next day i had a phone call saying she was willing to pay 1750 which she did, she gave me cash back of 1750 which i was pleased about!0
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Hi,
Structurally two reasons that would really put me off proceeding would be ongoing structural movement and significant dry rot. At the end of the day like most things a property is worth as much as you are prepared to pay for it assuming your lender will back that figure up and some people will even go beyond its market value if they have fallen in love with it. From a practical point of view try to be realistic and put youself in the place of the seller. How easy do you think you could sell this property on and if you do all the work required is there enough margin for you to have made a bit of a profit or would you be looking at a crippling loss.
With regard to the specific points you mention the following general comments may help but they are general only and may not be applicable to your particular case:
Roof undulation or roof sag can be due to a number of reasons such as undersize timbers for the loads, settlement, lack of triangulation etc. One of the most common reasons I see is when the original roof covering of slate or small tiles is replaced with a heavier covering such as concrete tiles. If this is the case it may be worth checking the local Planning & Conservation Officer have had no objections to this because a worst case I have seen was a new owner having to put back a more original type roof covering at their own expense. You will not correct the sag unless the roof is stripped and new pre-treated timber of appropriate size and strength used. What can be done is works to ensure the sag does not become any worse and this should be done under the guidance of a competant structural engineer who should specify works required for others to tender from. At the pre-purchase stage the engineer may be able to provide provisional budget costs for the work.
Party wall seperation within the roof space. Some older properties have significant gaps or even no party wall within the roof void such that it poses a security risk (i.e. next door can climb into your house down through your loft trap when you are out and at best help themselves to your fridge and at worst help themselves to everything you own) - repeat this issue all the way down a terrace and you have no idea who was responsible. The other issue is fire spread from one property to another. The party wall within the roof therefore has to be secure / strong and prevent fire spread. It will need discussion with the neighbour and compliance with the Party Wall Act 1996. The work should be checked by the Local Authority Building Control Officer and preferably local Fire Safety Officer. Quotations should be obtained from builders. The work is difficult to do in a confined space and the loft will require boarding out to work upon. Fire stopping foam is often specified to seal the smallest of spaces between roof covering and new wall.
The previous surveyor may have noted high damp readings and visual signs of dampness to the base of the walls but this alone does not confirm a new damp proof course is needed, only that it requires further investigation and any comment by the surveyor that states otherwise is misleading you. If the house is of an age where it was built with a damp proof course (and the majority of the UK housing stock is) then it is unlikley the original damp proof course itself has significantly failed though it may be being compromised by other issues.
It would be prudent to have the property inspected by an independent specialist in dampness -see those listed on the Property Care Association (PCA) website under heading find a member and sub heading freelance surveyor or consultant both of which are independent. Whilst they are at the property ask for them to check for all moisture sources, debris at the base of cavity walls, timbers throughout for decay and wood boring insect attack and condition of cavity wall ties. This surveyor should give you provisional budget costs and this will include costs for a new damp proof course with associated re-plastering to give you an an idea of a worst case scenario to protect you from suffering a loss. Contractors can be asked to tender for works that independent surveyor has recommended either before you buy if you want firm quotations or afterwards if you are happy to go with provisional budget costs at pre-purchase stage.
Lateral restraint to gable end: Since the structural stability of the property is dependent upon this the works need to be inspected and specified by a competant structural engineer who should also oversee the works and give written warranties as to the structural stability of the property upon completion. Lateral restraints are often metal straps or long threaded bar or twisted bar which depending upon type are bolted / resin fixed from wall to structural timbers such as floors and roofs in addition to sometimes strapping intersecting walls. Competant contractors need to quote for works the engineer specifies and this should include for opening up areas which may be obstructed such as bathroom suites and feature floors etc adjacent to the gable to gain access and all making good. Be warned that some walls may be unsuitable for such work because of poor substrate or excessive movement that has already occurred and as such require re-building rather than strapping / restraint. I have seen walls continue to move after restraint for these reasons and end up having to be rebuilt so the liability must rest with the structural engineer as to whether they can save the wall. The strapping work is expensive and you can imagine that rebuilding is considerably more.
If your surveyor has not mentioned it, personally I would have a drain video survey with written report and this video given to you, an inspection by NICEIC electrician and inspection by Gas Safe plumber with their recommendations and provisional budget costings having told them they will not be the ones asked to do the work to reduce the risk of them overstating a problem.
Then you trot back to the seller and haggle over the price of the house. No actually before you do all of the above you go back to the seller first and say look if you want to sell this house all these reports and investigations are going to have to be done and paid for and I think it only fair that you pay for at least half and are you prepared to drop the price by the cost of the works they recommend / help fund the cost of your retention because you may well not have the money to stump up the works required / cost of reports. If the answer is no and the price the house is up for sale is the price you will have to pay then do some long hard thinking and if it doesn't add up simply walk away.
Out of all the reports above I'd go with the structural engineer first because his decisions will have the biggest impacts upon costs (though the others are considerable) especially if they say a rebuild rather than restraint is required.
However the £2000 quoted I would imagine is chronically understated because the structural engineers fee alone is likely to be at least around £500 plus VAT (and may well be considerably more) and to just scaffold many house gables of a decent size even before you start work can be at least £1000 plus VAT so there has to be some serious consideration / dropping of prices to make sure you do not suffer a loss and really you should also want an adjustment in price to reflect all the hassle of this work such as you cannot decorate for months following plastering etc.
I hope the above may help - kindest regards David Aldred independent dampness and timber surveyor.0
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