Repaired Cornish build house.

mbspark

Hi all, its my first post on site, but hope you all don't mind sharing some experience!

We put an offer in on a house we really liked and as such have been excited and eager to get in.

However the mortgage company called asking for a prc certificate as the ' mansard cottage style' house they marketed was actually a repaired Cornish build prefab!

We have the certificate but were really disappointed. With these the concrete panels are removed and double skin walls rebuilt on the exterior.

The roof, timber frame with hanging tiles, extends down past the upstairs windows and is essentially your upstairs interior walls!

Our question really is: Is there longevity in this type of build upstairs ( timber frame etc) and does anyone live in one and is happy with it? Its just knowing ot was a prefab has affected our value perception and resale potential of the place.

Sorry its long winded, but thanks!

Werdnal

If the certificate says it has been done to the required standard it is now mortgagable and should not unduly affect its value in future. They are not the prettiest of houses, but its a bit marmite really - my mum always rued the day we moved as she loved it! I was brought up in one of these - council house - and live in Cornwall so they are more than common here.

I have heard people say they can be cold upstairs as they have little insulation in the upper floor tiled walls, but I can't honestly remember it being that bad. We had no heating and single pane wooden window frames - most would have central heating and double glazing now, so that must be an improvement.

They are called "Cornish Unit" homes if you want to do a search online for more info. The benefit I remember is the rooms were very generous and the tend to have larger than average gardens too. I assume its ex-local authority housing?

mbspark

Cheers for the reply,

Yes it's got heating and double glazing, and the downstairs is in really good nick, It was local authority at one stage i think. one worry is how long the original upstairs will actually last!

Davesnave

mbspark wrote: »

The roof, timber frame with hanging tiles, extends down past the upstairs windows and is essentially your upstairs interior walls!

Our question really is: Is there longevity in this type of build upstairs ( timber frame etc) and does anyone live in one and is happy with it? Its just knowing ot was a prefab has affected our value perception and resale potential of the place.

Would you ask this question if it was a standard dormer bungalow? The BS seem to consider that repaired Cornish units are mortgage-worthy.

Has the house has been marketed at around the going rate for these? You can check this by using one of the sites like Nethouseprices. If it has, then you know what the resale value is.

Most properties, especially affordable ones, have some disadvantages. Ex-council houses from this period frequently come with spacious plots compared with modern builds.

Maybe another useful thing you could do is compare the £ per square metre / ft internal area of this house with the alternatives. You may be pleasantly surprised.

Strapped

I grew up in a number of these (common design for married quarters) and sorry to say, I definitely remember them being cold! But maybe that's because "we were poor" and as Werdnal says, they've probably improved with double glazing and central heating since then. You might want to ask about how the upstairs is insulated though.

mbspark

Cheers for the replies!
Its was on the market for the same as regular houses in that area, and Strapped, I take it they were still concrete surround then? We think its nice inside but wish the estate agents and vendors had told us the truth in the first place! Its rocked our confidence in the place now.

Does anyone on here currently live in a repaired one?

CharlieRabbit01

I don't but a friend of mine does and my grandma used to live in one, what do you want to know exactly?

mbspark

Oh great! I guess we feel a bit intimidated by pontential problems now we know it was a prefab, so:

1) Is she happy with the property in general?
2) does the upstairs get cold with the timber frame
3) is the upstairs interior flimsy feeling, does it feel its going to last anothr 40-50 years!

Many thanks!

CharlieRabbit01

1. Yeah she loves it and was also a bit wary like yourself but she is more than happy with it.

2. it does get a bit chilly, but not really cold.

My grandma started off with it in its original state (concrete walls) it was refurbished with brick walls and new tiles, the main problem she has was it wasn't very air tight, so these improvements definitely made it warmer.

3. not been able to get hold of my friend but she had all the surveys etc and was happy to purchase it and intends to be there long term as her parents live round the corner.

I'd definitely google Cornish Units and maybe contact someone who specialises in refurbishing these kind of properties to see if/what can be done with insulation.

mbspark

Many thanks for that!