Buying house with no planning permission...help

faithbuster

Help!!!!



I am a first time buyer and found a beautiful house , after weeks of negotiations, my offer was accepted. Subsequently, i had trouble sorting my mortgage and after a couple of months , finally mortgage was granted. We are almost ready to exchange the contracts but solicitor pointed out that , there was no planning permission or buiding regulation for the loft conversion which comprises of 2 bedrooms and a shower room. It was not the seller who did the conversion, it was there before he bought in 2005 but he himself is not aware when it was built.But he has taken an indemnity insurance to protect from any future enforcement and hence my solicitor pointed out that it should be alright to go ahead with the sale.



But, i have my doubts, as I read that I am not covered by indemnity insurance for structural defects or shoddy workmanship and hence I asked seller for a structural survey done for the loft conversion to make sure it is of not bad standards but he refused. Previously, i opted for home buyers report and it came out clean but the surveyor pointed out that loft conversion is not inspected but cosmetically looks in good shape.



I decided to go for a structural survey for loft conversion with my own costs for my peace of mind but the seller is threatening to pull out if I dont reach a decision by Monday. It took some time to sort my mortgage, and I can understand his frustration, but I have to decide now whether to take it or leave it.



Am I stressing too much, any advise greatly appreciated.



Thanks

Raj

kazwookie

Personally I'd cut my losses and run fast..............

If there is no PP and it is not likely to be granted, you could / would be made to take it down at your expense......

lincroft1710

And if he goes ahead, puts it back on the market, the next prospective purchaser will have the same problem, so further delays in selling!!

Don't be rushed into a decision which may be an expensive mistake and one you could live to regret. Always be suspicious when people try to pressurise you into a quick decision, especially where there is a potential problem. With loft conversions the joists often aren't strong enough to support the floor and usually steel beams are needed for reinforcement.

Caffca

Tell him your decision is that you are having a structural survey done on the loft conversion.

If he doesn't like it, yes he can withdraw from the sale but as he is pushing you to make a decision to my mind it means he wants the house sold. Unless he already has another buyer lined up ready to go who isn't concerned about the loft conversion, it very much sounds like he is trying to scare / bully you into proceeding before you are happy. Ignore it. He is unlikely to want to go back to marketing the property and finding another buyer especially as he'll have to go through all this again.

Fire_Fox

Have a structural survey or reduce your offer to take account of the possibly unuseable loft conversion. There is a risk that fire regs have not been adhered to, even a risk the ceiling or roof could cave in due to the structure not being reinforced.

faithbuster

Thanks for your advise.

But, how is the indemnity insurance is likely to help me. I read from the forums as the conversion was made more than 6 years ago , I am immune from any action by the council. My solicitor is saying that as neither the home buyers report nor the mortgage lender's valuation reported problems or raised any objection to it, I shouldn't be too worried but I might face similar problem when it comes to resale which is the only risk I am taking.

But, if the seller really pulls it out, then I will be loosing the valuation and solicitors fee which comes to £1500 and will have to spend this again on a new house. Also my mortgage was approved after great difficulty where every bank refused but one. So I am really in tricky situation.

Also, I was told that any structural survey is going to come with some problems anyway as survey would be with today's building standards. Is this true...

Thanks

jockosjungle

Take a builder around the house and ask if it has been done correctly? You might need to pay them for their time though

R

kazwookie

I don't think the indemnity insurance is gonig to help you want so ever, I don't think it is worth the paper it is written on, why not ring the ins company and ask them?

RLH33

If the loft conversion was done before 2005 then it will be exempt from enforcement by the Planning Department, if it indeed needed planning permission in the first place.

Personally though I would be worried about the structural integrity of the conversion, if they are not done properly then they can be at risk of collapsing the roof, possibly taking the outside walls with it, and insufficient floor joists. If two bedrooms are in the roof then you are obviously going to be paying a lot of money for that extra space so you need to make sure that everything is ok before you buy.

Ok so the seller is threatening to pull out, which I very much doubt he will, he is just bullying you, and you may lose £1500 if he does, but how much will you lose if you find that the loft has not been done properly and you have to make that right, how much will you lose if this all comes up when you sell the house? I would go for the structural survey and find out for sure if it was done right, I would never mess with structural stuff it just isn't worth the risk.

faithbuster

Thanks for your advise. I will insist on Monday that I have to have a structural survey done and as advised I cant see why the seller would be too foolish to put it back in the market.

But anyway,should the seller agree for a structural inspecction to be carried out, anyone knows if a structural engineer would be able to certify or atleast will be able to give a written confirmation that the extension is of (or not) to a reasonable standard so as to (or not) get a retrospective planning permission.

tux900

RLH33 wrote: »

If the loft conversion was done before 2005 then it will be exempt from enforcement by the Planning Department, [...]

Can you cite a reference? Does that only apply to breaches of planning permission rules, or compliance with building regulations also?

I would go for the structural survey and find out for sure if it was done right

Agreed - there's really nothing to lose by doing so. If the vendor's reaction to the decision is to pull out then that would speak volumes.

Mathew