Survey on house we're buying is awful!

Sapphire

rovers wrote:

Thanks you two.
It is a homebuyer's survey.

Leak in chimneystacks
Two windows painted shut need to be re-opened
driveway needs drainage improvement
gutter over garage needs replacing
wc defective
damp and timber report required
structural engineers report required in light of deflection noted withing the timber and the sloping noted to the flooring within the rear 2 storey addition and the hairline cracking ont he landing.

Difficult to tell without further information, but the things that would worry me most seriously would be the sagging roof and, of the above, deflection within the timber and the sloping floor, which could indicate subsidence.

I also wouldn't be too happy about the WC being defective (whatever that means) or the gutter needing replacing.

Things like re-opening windows that were painted shut would not be a problem at all - in fact I've left one of my windows shut after having it painted as a secturity measure!

clutton_2

i would want a substantial reduction in price, or i would walk away.

Miss_Penny_Pincher_2

I agree that you should speak to your surveyor. I spoke to ours after we got a very bad survey and didn't really know what to make of it because it was the first one we had seen. The surveyor was able to give his opinion more than he would write in a survey and strongly recommended we walk away from the property even though he valued it at only £2k below the agree purchase price.

Also remember that a surveyor will miss things so if the work is shoddy there could be more problems revealed as you get some of the repairs done!

quietheart

Miss_Penny_Pincher wrote:

I agree that you should speak to your surveyor. I spoke to ours after we got a very bad survey and didn't really know what to make of it because it was the first one we had seen. The surveyor was able to give his opinion more than he would write in a survey and strongly recommended we walk away from the property even though he valued it at only £2k below the agree purchase price.
Also remember that a surveyor will miss things so if the work is shoddy there could be more problems revealed as you get some of the repairs done!

I'm really surprised the surveyor was straight with you about walking away, I thought they'd have to be more discrete! My husband will speak to him today so I'm looking forward to seeing what he says. We've got someone having a look from outside to see what he thinks and I'm feeling far more hard-line about meeting the owner, unless he is going to resolve all the problems we'll have to pull out. Whatever will be will be I guess.
Some really good advice coming through here, I really appreciate it everyone. :T

matto

Survey itself doesn't sound too bad to me. Surevyors are prone to being overcautious and advise you get everything checked as that takes responsibility off them.

However, I would look very very carefully at a builder renovated property. They tend to know how to cover things up.

missk_ensington

It normally costs me £100 backhander to get a survey as crap as that!!! I'm mortified when it comes up good cos it means I can't knock the price of the house down.

You need to estimate how much the 'problems' will cost to repair and knock this off price. He either takes it or leaves it, although in my experience they'd rather take it than begin all over again marketing the property

quietheart

missk_ensington wrote:

It normally costs me £100 backhander to get a survey as crap as that!!! I'm mortified when it comes up good cos it means I can't knock the price of the house down.

You need to estimate how much the 'problems' will cost to repair and knock this off price. He either takes it or leaves it, although in my experience they'd rather take it than begin all over again marketing the property

Fair point, I am starting to see the survey as a positive thing, maybe it's just not meant to be or maybe we can just get it for less/get the work done prior to moving....
House buying was never gonna be straightforward I guess!

quietheart

hethmar wrote:

I have to say that most Surveyors are pretty non committal so for this guy to openly criticise the builders work means these are important points. I mean the hairline cracking is likely nothing, possibly just new plaster drying out but it may mean that this guy has been covering things up.

1930s houses arent that old - my husband works on houses 5 centuries old and they are still standing!

The repairs sound expensive - for instance, the leaking chimneys (though without a cctv and/or sealed smoke test, how did he know this point??? The only other way would be the evidence of staining on walls) Well, if both chimneys need lining you are talking probably £2k just for that job.

It doesnt sound a good deal as it stands.

£2K for the chimneys - Christ on a bike! I had no idea. There is some staining by the way.
The worrying thing is getting such a bad survey AFTER a renovation, what was it like before? When we first viewed it I loved it but said then that I reckoned the builder had run out of money as things weren't finished off.... Could be an interesting meeting on Saturday!

clutton_2

rover """ if we pull out we'll lose plenty of money""

this is all down to mathematics - if you pull out now how much will you have lost ? - a few hundred quid.

if you buy it, how much more will it cost you to get it to a decent standard.

(by the way has the work that has been done got the backing of a local authority building regs certificiate ? - your solicitor will know, and if it needs one and it has not got one, don't buy this house. )

quietheart

he seems to have all the necessary building regs. The surveyor thought the pebbledash rendering was particularly poor especially on the new extension. So much of it does seem to make you think "cover up" though....
as someone said earlier, guttering etc is so simple for a builder, why wasn't it done? just doesn't add up to me.