Advice need on Underpinned house

helping_hand_3

We are about to buy a property and are ver close to exchange of contracts.
We received the preliminary fiding on the property from the solicitors today and he has bought the following to our notice.

"Please note that as the owner has died, there is little information of use save we are told the garage was extended in 1975 and the property has been underpinned at some time. This is as much as the seller’s know and there are no available documents about either matter. I am not concerned about the extension as it is so old, but you will have to rely on your survey about the underpinning aspect."

What should we do now? We will pull out if the property has been underpinned But if there is no documents to confirm the same. then?
Would I be able to get home insurance without any documentation about the underpinning?

Advise Please

Thanks

G_M

Insurance will be difficult and you'll need specialist insurers.

You have been notified of the underpinning, so denying knowledge would be fraud, and would invalidate any insurance you took out if you did not declare it to the insurers.

Your survey should throw further light on the matter: I would have a full structural suvey and/or structural engineer's report if you decide to continue.

helping_hand_3

Thanks G_M
You are right I have been notified about the underpinned in a report, but nothing more as there are no documents.
I did get a Home Buyers Report which I belive is a property survey and valuation and the surveyor has not mentioned anything on the structure that needs attention. I have left him a message about the underpinning.

Salz

I think you will find your mortgage is pulled if there is a possibility of underpinning? This has happened a few times recently near where I used to live.

helping_hand_3

No I have got mortgage offer on the property already. ....

Salz

helping_hand wrote: »

No I have got mortgage offer on the property already. ....

Did they know about the underpinning though?

I have just found this thread which might be useful?
https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/433345

helping_hand_3

The property has been with the same family for 40+ years..I have raised this with the estate agent and speak to my solicitor on Monday.

The people in this thread are in a similar position ...its shame it hasnt been mentioned whether you would get normal insurance once a structural survey proves the house to be sound

Doozergirl

When you say the garage was extended, what did they do? If they built over it or converted part of the original garage then it could have been underpinned simply to hold the additional storey or make the existing structure comply to building regs for a habitable room.

My kitchen has been underpinned to hold a second storey - another bedroom. Searches show the underpinning but it relates directly to the requirement for deeper foundations in 1995 than when the kitchen was built. There's nothing wrong with the house structurally at all!

helping_hand_3

Thanks Dozergirl,
There is side extension whic looks like a garage but is used as a workshop.
Following your information, I looked in theapproved plans for the house and noticed there is one for "Underpinning of the garage" does not say when or what they did.
How can I find that? Do I just call the council?

helping_hand_3

After several sleepless nights I have some update
Monday morning I made the following calls
1. Council : confirms that the 2nd garage has been underpinned. This was due to some drianing problem and not subidence. Howvere a completion certificate has not bee issued and that needs a building inspeactor to do so.
On mentioning this to the vendor he is following this up
2. Surveyor : Confirms there is no sign of subsidence in the house or any movemnt, it doesnt require a structural survey as there are no indications to any problems
3. Estate agent : following up with the vendor and confirmed to get copy of the insurance etc.

AFter all this we went to the property again today with the surveyor and he reckons nothing is wrong. howvere since work has been carried out and that its is now part of the history of the house, we should get some price reduced.

What should we do?

sonastin

Am I right in thinking that the insurance issue only relates to subsidence? Not underpinning? The 2 often go hand-in-hand which makes people think they are one-and-the-same but not always as in Dozergirl's example and apparently in this case. As I understand it, you might have insurance issues if you knew that there was a history of subsidence and no evidence that it had been correctly rectified. As you think the underpinning was carried out for a completely different reason, I don't see why you would need to disclose this to the insurance company.