House with dodgy extension

comscout

My friend is trying to sell a house which has a loft conversion with no planning permission. She is under the impression from the neighbours that this conversion was done just before the requirement for planning permission came in, and this is what she is telling the estate agent. However, when she bought it, the solicitor made her aware it has no planning permission and advised her to buy an indemnity policy to cover any problems, for about £30 which she did.

She now is having difficulty selling the property - I've seen the extension, which is on a small terrace house - the stairs to the conversion are nicely done, but the extension itself is poor - the roof and walls are roofing felt, its damp, and it vibrates when buffeted by the wind. I doubt it would comply with building regs as there's no way you could get access to it from any angle with a fireengine (its got a small garden a path then more gardens to the back of it). Its a pretty horrible extension and it can't be helping with the house sale - any thoughts?

poppysarah

When she bought it what did she think about it?

So it's just roof space? Not boarded out and plastered? Sounds horrid.

silvercar

loft conversions don't always need planning permission, though they would need building consent. It may be that the rules in place at the time the extension was built were easier than they are now and her solicitor advised that an indemnity policy was a quicker way to proceed.

She could either go for retrospective consent or live with the indemnity policy. Buyers will value the extension as it is.

Incidentally, you need fire doors to separate it from the rest of the house to comply with building regs, rather than worry about access to it from fire engines.

comscout

Its boarded and plastered - inside its ok, looks dreadful from the outside. No firedoors. Possibly no RSJ's...No, she did not think before she bought it - no sense whatsoever.

Doozergirl

What is the question exactly? Does she want help for something?