Guidance please - No buildings regulations

ey143

Council claimed to have no records of any site visits despite evidence of fees being paid. That said it took many attempts at planning dept to get info to me after they claimed they couldn't find much initially. Surprisingly some councils don't go back more than 5 or 10 years with docs on their planning website. But buildings regs dept have even looked at microfiche.

ey143

Yup 27 years, repeated typo on my part. That should be better for me in terms of protection from the council but still leaves the issue of safety of construction not known despite it not having fallen down in that time
But the vendors talk of compression by a few cm and the new beam had concerned me and I did mention that to the surveyor before his visit.

In some respects because I will be making the downstairs all open plan and removing or supporting existing load bearing walls, would any final approval of works by the council also cover the old work that wasn't approved?

suebfg

OK, I have been through this recently. An indemnity insurance policy is pretty much worthless anyway as the Council will not generally take action after 4 years anyway and does not address the real concern that the building work is deficient. We went down the regularisation route, it delayed the purchase by about 8 weeks, and when you get the sign off, it states that it is evidence but not conclusive evidence that the works were carried out in accordance with building regs. It is a step below a completion certificate but effectively fulfils the same purpose. However, if I were you, I would also check whether planning permission should also have been obtained.

suebfg

PS, the Council will want to open up the works before they will issue a regularisation certificate but if the vendor wants to sell, they will do this.

ey143

Hi

Just an update for anyone else who comes to read this thread in the future.

We're currently still progressing on the conveyancing process some 2 months after I wrote the earlier message. I managed to get the local council to arrange to visit the vendor's property and they have agreed to issue a buildings regs certificate some 27 years after the various work was carried out.

This was an exceptional case because whilst planning permission was granted to separate the semi detached dwelling into 2 detached dwellings, a side double storey extension (granny annex) and a loft extension, no completion certificate was issues because the council claim never to have been called out and finalised the details (vendor disagreed) but because the vendor kept detailed photos of the whole thing and there were enginner's plans, they agreed to issue the certificate.

My efforts to want to do all this before instructing solicitors has paid dividends because the bank's lawyers would have asked for it now which would have taken over a month.

So thanks everyone for the advice.

On a separate note, my local search (results) indicate 3 covenants on the land/property including no letting out of the property, maintaining fences and repairing a rear wall if it damages.

My question is, how can I find out who put those covenants in, and whether it was the current vendors or whether this dates back to th 1930s. How can I be sure?

ging84

you've had a building survey completed,
what do you expect a building inspector would have been able to see 27 years ago that a surveyor cannot see now?

sleepymans

ey143 wrote: »

Hi
.....

On a separate note, my local search (results) indicate 3 covenants on the land/property including no letting out of the property, maintaining fences and repairing a rear wall if it damages.

My question is, how can I find out who put those covenants in, and whether it was the current vendors or whether this dates back to th 1930s. How can I be sure?

The covenants are in place and are usually "in stone". Does it matter who made them and when?

(Just curious)

ey143

ging84,
Given a choice between having a council certificate in place for work done a long time ago and not having one, I prefer the former option.

It has nothing to do with a buildings survey on its own. The added security of having formal paperwork signed off makes it one less issue I have to deal with when I come to sell the property, even though yes, the house remained standing for all this period of time.

sleepymans,
Yes it does, because if the covenant is being proposed by the current vendors to prevent me from having a lodger or renting out some additional room (an annex which has its own self contained unit and front door), then it might make me change my mind on purchasing the property as I lose an additional £1k to £1.5k per month. If it is a historical covenant, then its another matter. On the basis that he is currently "renting" out the granny annex to elderly relatives and a friend, makes me wonder......

silvercar

sleepymans wrote: »

The covenants are in place and are usually "in stone". Does it matter who made them and when?

(Just curious)

It does. Sometimes there is no-one left around to invoke them. So a builder 40 years ago could have required that they have to approve any extensions (often done to prevent building when they are still selling a development), but now that building firm no longer exists and their need to protect the development is redundant, the covenant is worthless.

There may be convenants requiring owners to contribute to the cost of maintaining a private road, roll forward 30 years and the road is adopted by the council and the covenant is no longer required.

My solicitor also mentioned something about proving a loss, so the covenant holder may have to prove they have incurred a loss by the covenant being broken.

Richard_Webster

On a separate note, my local search (results) indicate 3 covenants on the land/property including no letting out of the property, maintaining fences and repairing a rear wall if it damages.

My question is, how can I find out who put those covenants in, and whether it was the current vendors or whether this dates back to th 1930s. How can I be sure?

Local searches don't show covenants other than those imposed under planning agreements with the Planning Authority.

Covenants will normally be in the Land Registry entries or in documents referred to in them and OP's solicitor will be able to tell him the name of the person who originally benefited from them. Who can now enforce them is a more complicated issue.