Buying - declaring problems on a property and advice on propertybee or similar

pinkqueen

Hi all

We have recently put an offer on a house and had it accepted, currently going through mortgage approval. We are FTB so please bear with me if these are stupid questions!

One thing keeping me awake at night - the house doesn't have central heating (uses warm air heating) and the boiler is pretty old. We factored this into our offer which was under the asking price with the thought that we can get central heating next year. When we asked the vendor about the boiler she said (quote) 'it's worked fine for us, never had any problems'

Another thing worrying me now - the house had been on the market since Oct last year. Granted it was on at a high asking price originally but had been reduced quite quickly. My thoughts are now that perhaps the reason for this is previous would-be buyers have found a problem at the survey stage

Sorry for going on but my question I guess is twofold :
- I have recently become aware of propertybee, no use to us now as the house isnt being marketed anymore but is there anyway of finding out when a property has been taken off/put back on the market?
- If there is a problem with the boiler (gut instinct!), what come back do i have based on what the vendor says? Do they have to legally tell us of any problems etc?

thanks in advance

go_cat

Why don't you get the boiler serviced for your own peace of mind before you exchange ... if the service raises any problems you will be in a position to renegotiate with the vendor on any repairs necessary to make it safe.

kiki*_2

If your quick British gas are doing boiler service and safety check for £50 if you do it before 31st August.

pinkqueen

Thanks both of you

We actually know someone who works for BG and I'm sure would be prepared to take a look but how do I go about arranging this with the vendor? Through the EA?

kiki*_2

I did it all through the EA and the vendor was kind enough to let me be there when it took place. It was great for peace if mind. I was convinced the boiler wouldn't work when actually it turned out to be fine!

westv

Make sure anybody you get to look at the boiler is actually qualified in warm air systems - not all gas safe engineers are.

Also, Ive heard (whether it's true or not is another matter) that warm air boilers are normally very durable and can last decades without problem.

Edit: Oh and just to add, warm air heating is "central heating" but, obviously, not with hot water rads.

ruggedtoast

The agent shouldnt remove the property from rightmove until you've completed. As long as you tick the option to include STC houses it will still show as will its propertybee history.

If the warm air boiler has survived so far itll probably get you through another winter. I dont think there is anything really wrong with them, but heating engineers often wont touch them so most people have them replaced when they conk out.

JingleJangle

My grandparents had a warm air heating system in their 1960s house, it was still going strong nearly 35 years later when we sold the house after they died. They are apparently very reliable. And a vendor legally states whether the central heating system is in good working order. If it turns out not to be in good working order you can technically sue them. However, in reality it can be hard to prove exactly when it went wrong, as it is perfectly possible it could conk out on the day you move in, which would not invalidate the vendor's statement.