Brickwork Crack Stitching

Ericthehalfbee

We are looking at a detached house that has been underpinned after some significant settlement. No less than 11 vertical cracks have been stitched with resin and stainless steel rods. the vendors want top price for the house and the EA has re-assured us that the remedial work guarantees that the house is now solid. Unfortunately our surveyor missed all this!! as the brickwork is now rendered, he did however point our numerous hairline cracks which correlate with the historic cracks that were repaired.


Question, as the repairs are only four years old are we right to be cautious about any guarantees? and how reliable is crack stitching?


thanks in advance.

bryanb

I'd be careful to check buildings insurance cost before committing.

DaftyDuck

It very much depends on how well it was done, and whether the guarantees are valid, transferable and insurance-backed. What exactly did your surveyor spot? Refer the information you now have on the subsidence and ask for his comments on the cracking he observed in light of this new information.

Consider the difficulty and cost of reinsurance very carefully and factor in the possible difficulties of resale - especially if the problem recurs.
If there is any doubt in the paper trail or view of your surveyor, I'd look elsewhere.

I'd only buy a property that had been subject to recent subsidence and recent repair if the price was exceptional and there was little else that fitted the bill. Otherwise I'd look elsewhere.

G_M

Ignore everything the estate agent says: his job is to sell the property and not to give you advice. He works for the seller - not you.

You will alway have to declare the work for insurance purposes - so most comparison websites are out. Put in the details in a couple of insurer's websites as if you already owned, and see what insurance prices you get.

I can't comment on 'stitching', but investigate the guarantee. As DaftyDuck says, if the builder goes out of business, the guarantee will be useless unless it is 'insurance backed'.

It also needs to be transferable ie from the current owner to you, or, again, it will be meaningless.

Ericthehalfbee

Thanks all for useful comments. As always there is more to the story but wont bore you. Will go back to the surveyor and check out the insurance situation, thanks DD. I guess the main thing is the uncertainty and it's a lot of money to invest, as GM says the EA wants his cut but probably going to end up walking away from this one. Am still curious about the cracks appearing in the render overlaying the stitched areas, has anyone experience of this? is this indicative of on-going movement?....

DaftyDuck

Well, render will crack on pretty much any movement underneath, but one would need some movement for the cracks to correlate with the original cracks.

One thing that'd worry the socks off me would be the adding of the render at all. I'd want to be able to see the lack of further movement before rendering, I'd want to know it was stable. This smacks of cover-up to me. Could be entirely innocent, of course, but could be costly if not.

Worth pointing out that, if I were selling that property, I'd have highlighted the subsidence on viewing, but shown you the paperwork & guarantee for you to peruse, and put your mind at rest from the outset... and for you to pass on to both your solicitor & surveyor. It appears you only found out later in the process. Go figure why.