Home Buyers Report - Results and Issues!!

chick21

Just had a House Buyers Report done by a private surveyor for a 4-bed freehold mid-terrace house (ex-LA most likely, built in the 1960s) in SW London.

Property was on the market for £369,995, offer was eventually accepted at £350k and surveyor has valued it at £345k due to the asbestos issue in point 1). He's also said with about £20-30k worth of work, the property value may go up to £390-400k.

Apart from a full refurbishment of everything, there will need to be 2x new bathrooms (1 family, 1 wet room) and new kitchen placed in.

The report has flagged up 4 other major areas to be remidied:

1) Partly broken asbestos cold water tank (disused) in attic. Will require specialists to remove, linked with damaged ceiling in front bedroom.

2) Potential overhaul of radiator systems (missing thermostats on some, visible leaking on pipes and others). Boiler seems new though.

3) Gas meter and connection has been removed.

4) Fuse board is a modern consumer unit, but no comment on condition or standard of installation. Surface fittings are fairly modern, although older fittings and underlying wiring remains.

Do these issues seem to be a major problem? Obviously the asbestos one is! Overall, the surveyor said even with the problems, he would probably buy it.

Any idea how much these items would cost and if I could negotiate down the price? If so by how much?

Any similar experiences?

fraser

you need to now get some quotes in for the various items, these will provide you with additional ammo in tandem with the 345k value attributed

get a plumber into quote for 1, 2 and 3, sparky for 4

they should all do a free estimate

did the surveyor check out the roof, gutters etc and roof space as well?

chick21

fraser wrote: »

you need to now get some quotes in for the various items, these will provide you with additional ammo in tandem with the 345k value attributed

get a plumber into quote for 1, 2 and 3, sparky for 4

they should all do a free estimate

did the surveyor check out the roof, gutters etc and roof space as well?

Do you think I can get estimates if I haven't yet brought the property?

Roof - covered in slates/synthetic, reasonable condition, moss to slopes. Flat roof to rear extension covered in bitumen felt (life span of 15 years), but appears in reasonable condition with ledge to main building sealed by ledge flashings.

Gutters - Plastic, mostly reasonable alignment, though gutter joints leak and all needs overhauling e.g. front left hand side leak, marks to most joints, to rear extension a gutter section is disconnected.

Roof space - insulation below current standards, around 50mm thick, should be improved. Insulation to rear flat roof could not be ascertained as no access. Disconnected plastic cold water and header tank therein. Part broken up cold water tank that is expected to incorporate asbestos with broken edges, exposed fibres and resulting dust. Recommend no loft access until tank has been removed by specialists.

Inspection of this space was terminated on observing the suspected asbestos debris. No evidence of any significant rot or active wood boring beetle infestation. Flow of air is fair, though ideally vents should be fitted, say to ridge, roof slopes or eaves. The area is not designed for storage of heavy items, there was a large quantity of stored items that remain to be cleared.

fraser

of course, any reasonable seller should be more than happy to let a buyer have some estimates / specialist inspections for each area done - how will you know what you are letting yourself in for?, better to do it now than afterwards and shell out for it.

Or do you have someone you know who has a good knowledge of doing these jobs in the past? family member or friend in the trade?

sounds like you need to factor in gutting repairs as well plus some checks on the flashings - you need a roofer to look from the outside or factor in replacement - depends on the size of the house and the location in the uk can range from £700 to several grand for guttering, facias and barge boards.

tizerbelle

chick21 wrote: »

Do you think I can get estimates if I haven't yet brought the property?

Yes, it's normal practice for house purchases. Inform the EA that as a result of the survey you need further reports doing so how do they want to arrange access. Could be they agree with vendor that they will let the company doing the report to have the keys or vendor might want to be in property when they do it. Then ring the company you want to do the report, explain buying a house, need report doing and access to the property can be arranged by contacting EA/vendor.

chick21

Would all these quotes be an idea of how much I would spend on the refurbishment or would it go towards decreasing the offer?

The surveyor knocked £5k off due to the asbestos tank and ceiling issue.

G_M

Depends whether the original value factored in the condition. Seems to me that you (and probobly the vendor) knew this was " a full refurbishment " so presumably the price reflected that.

Vendor might be willing to reduce price if previously unknown work is needed, and if they are desperate to sell and/or have been on the market a while and/or had little other interest.

Or not.

chick21

Well in my opinion, the asbestos issue (shouldn't have allowed viewings!) and missing gas main were definitely unknown.

I did know there was a hole in the ceiling and needed a general refurbishment.

chick21

I sent extracts (relating to the major issues, 2 pages) to the Estate Agents last night, today they've asked me to send them the whole report. What should I do in this situation?

Obviously he's valued the property at 5k less, but what if I want to negotiate more (or the estimates come in at a higher price?)

chick21

I just left this message with the EA:

The vendor was obviously aware of this as work had commenced on the problem. Had the water tank not been disturbed, there wouldn't be as much of an issue. Based on this report and its findings, I am willing to deal with the asbestos problem by employing licenced contractors (expensive and hazardous to health) and rectify the issue myself if remunerations are set in place and the price negotiated. Compiled with the other quite major issues that I highlighted in my previous email that were not brought to my attention when viewing the property, I would like you to discuss with the vendor my original offer of £340k and come back with their response.

Was this a bit too harsh/much especially post offer?