Could this roof cause problems?

DieHard

I am on the verge of buying a house and I have noticed the roof is unusual compared to other houses in the street. The roof is slightly raised on one half. Does anyone know why this would be the case? Could it cause problems with the roof in the future? Cosmetically it is not ideal but as long as it doesn't cause any problems with the roof that is OK as that would be my main concern. Why would they do the roof this way? Could it be to correct something that might be a problem?





Could this be a problem?

Hintza

How strange. I would only be vaguely worried at the join but even then I doubt I would lose any sleep over it if there was no signs of dampness in the loft.

SailorSam

With it being such a new house it must have been passed by the building inspector so i can't imagine it would cause problems, it is strange though. Ask the seller about it and ask can you get up in the loft to see if it all looks ok.
If you get a survey done i'd certainly make a point of asking and pointing it out.

DieHard

I had a look in the loft and I couldn't see any dampness but I wasn't looking for it. I only noticed the roof last night because I saw that the full roof wasn't shown on the estate agent photographs so I went onto google images and saw that. Then I went and had a look at it. It doesn't look that bad in the flesh but that is because you are at ground level I suppose.

I could ask if they have noticed any damp because they said they had recently boarded out the loft so if there was any they would have noticed it but I would be amazed if they had because they saw the fact it was boarded out as a selling feature and invited me to go into the loft.

I did notice a crack in the bathroom ceiling, it is where the pull switch for the shower is located so I assumed it was caused by the cord being pulled. Also the light had been replaced and there was paint peeling round the fitting but it looked like it was just because they did a really bad job with the fitting.

Also the extractor fan was taped up. When I asked about that they said it was because there was a window in the bathroom (which is true) and the wind rattled through the fan even when it wasn't on causing a noise and a draft. She said she didn't like it and didn't want to use it so she taped it up.

I have made an offer but I haven't completed my mortgage application yet so I still have the choice of Valuation, Home Buyers report and Survey through the building society. Do you think I should get a full survey? Or would a homebuyers report cover that? Could I contact the surveyor prior to them going round to do a homebuyers report and ask them to look at the loft.

fluffymuffy

Does the house step out at the back? So that it's about a foot longer on plan than those next to it? That would explain why the roof goes up a tile course - it's just a bigger roof than the one next to it - covering a slightly bigger house.

Jojo_the_Tightfisted

I would suspect that there has been a pretty big leak, for the light to have been replaced, the extractor to be out of action (the electrics were probably connected for light and fan together) and for any damage to have been conveniently covered by new boards where you can't see the water damage or notice there is no insulation left.

penguingirl

DieHard wrote: »

Also the extractor fan was taped up. When I asked about that they said it was because there was a window in the bathroom (which is true) and the wind rattled through the fan even when it wasn't on causing a noise and a draft. She said she didn't like it and didn't want to use it so she taped it up.

This makes sense to me- our fan in our ensuite is taped up because of the noise. We don't ever use the shower in there anyway as it is unpumped and the extractor fan was never very effective. The rattling drove us mad if it was bad weather outside and the taping helps a bit, as does wedging a couple of bits of wood in it.

Is the house extended? My neighbours house has a similar looking roof because they extended their garage up another floor.