Survey report Can we negotiate a reduction

thestens

We are in the process of buying an old house( c1830) . We have just received the surveyors report that suggest there is about £6000 worth of work that should be done. It says the work is essential. Most of it seems to be maintenance work ie repointing etc. There are a couple such as wood worm treatment that are outside the maintenance scope. We were wondering can we negotiate to get some of the costs off the price of the house? House price £282000.

phill99

You can always make a revised offer. Doesn't mean it will be accepted though. It depends how much you want the property and how much the vendor wants it sold.

DRP

You can *definitely* negotiate a lower purchase price.

But only if your seller agrees.

cattie

Of course you can try for a reduction, but unless it's something serious, then vendor might not be willing to renegotiate.

Usually if work is essential then the lender will hold a retention on the monies loaned. Repointing isn't something that is absolutely essential right at this present time.

It's Likely that the surveyor has recommended you get a timber treatment specialist in to check for woodworm, as surveyors never give actual opinions on such things as they are just not qualified to do so. It's the same with gas, electrics, water etc. you will be always be advised to get specialist in to check. This is just a surveyors way of covering their backs.

Very few older properties ever get a completely clean bill of health from a surveyor.

Kazza_Monkey

Yes there is no reason for you not to try and re-negotiate. But it is best to try and make these negotiations sooner rather than later. Otherwise your vendor may think you are trying to mess them about if it's just before exchange. Also what I would recommend is sending a copy of the pages with the problem items highlighted so your vendor can see your query is genuine to the EA then they can explain this to the vendor.

FR_262

If I were you I'd ask a couple of builders for quotes to get the work done. Surveyors can be way off the mark. I had one who said the house had damp, but when the DPC man came round to look, there was no damp.

Road_Hog

thestens wrote: »

We are in the process of buying an old house( c1830) . We have just received the surveyors report that suggest there is about £6000 worth of work that should be done. It says the work is essential. Most of it seems to be maintenance work ie repointing etc. There are a couple such as wood worm treatment that are outside the maintenance scope. We were wondering can we negotiate to get some of the costs off the price of the house? House price £282000.

Nope, pony up the money.


Six grand is nothing on a £282K property. All properties need money spent on them, it is par for the course.


A house that is almost 200 hundred years old, is definitely going to need some work done, that should always be factored into your buying price.