Survey back, house is in a terrible state.

Pandilex

Just got the structural engineer's report on the property I was buying and it has a ton of issues, both with damp, a rotting timber, wall slightly leaning etc.

It looks like doom and gloom and I've requested a chat with the surveyor to help me interpret it but it looks like the house is a no-go as it'd be prohibitively expensive to fix.

I'm a bit bummed now, I don't really feel bad it didn't work out great, and I'm definitely pleased with the money spent on the report, but there seems to be even less properties available than when I was looking a couple of months ago - I hit up all my old search links to be faced with 'sorry no properties match your criteria' across the board.

I'm wondering if all houses are likely to have such huge problems, I mean it's not like you inspect your own house is it?

I'm also wondering how a seller would react to discovering this information. After I do due diligence on the survey etc. I will probably have to notify them that their house is a disaster zone and unless they knock something crazy like £30,000 off the price (more than 10%) it's no good. Perhaps they'll just re-list it and keep quiet until they find someone that doesn't pay for a proper survey.

I also have no clue how the mortgage is going to work now, it cost like £1000 to set up so I am worried I'll lose that if I can't find a new property soon (or even if I can, I'll have to talk to the mortgage adviser soon to see how it works) and there is literally nothing coming up.

Sorry this is a bit of a ranty post, and I am eating my words for wondering why the process of buying a house didn't seem as difficult as people said.

Any tips or advice welcome. Thanks for listening! :beer:

themull1

Don't buy it, even with money knocked off, something better will come along. I think everyone inspects their own house to some extent, they need maintaining after all. At least the surveyors report showed this up before you bought it.

I_have_spoken

has a ton of issues, both with damp, a rotting timber, wall slightly leaning etc

Pretty much anything pre-war will have these issues

ClareTeaches

When you say the house is in a terrible state, has the structural engineer said to avoid or is this your reading of the report? If the latter, do you have any experience/know about surveys?

I'm just asking, because if you don't know about buildings and surveys, etc, then such reports can be quite alarming, as surveyors have to point out every little thing they spot, whether or not it's an issue. Sorry if that is patronising, it's just I've seen a lot of people horrified by surveys/home buyer reports which aren't actually as bad as they seem - I'm just lucky as my partner's an architect and I've been obsessed with house buying stuff since I was a kid, so I could look at our survey in a realistic way and see/ask what was an issue and what was the standard for a report.

If you're not sure about the survey, maybe you can outline in more detail on here or it will become clear when you speak to the engineer. You never know, you might still be able to go through with this purchase ...

Also, as I Have Spoken has alluded to - when is this property from?

katejo

I_have_spoken wrote: »

Pretty much anything pre-war will have these issues

Not necessarily. I have a pre war terrace. The survey indicated some damp and I had to have lead flashings added to the roof within a couple of years but on the whole it was a worthwhile purchase.

makeyourdaddyproud

I_have_spoken wrote: »

Pretty much anything pre-war will have these issues

I will second that.


Buying Edwardian? Add woodworm, flooring damage from circular saws, burn marks, pet carcasses, asbestos to name a few.


Still didn't change my intention to purchase for our low price. Space is king back then, and it's boo hoo to newbuilders with your el-cheapo eye candy kitchens waiting to fall apart and not enough space to swing your hair.


Think carefully before NOT deciding to buy.


Your next house in 6 months could be £10k more expensive due to itchy finger vendor valuations than it is now. Could it only be £10k worth of building work? You have to wonder.


Put in a lower offer and set aside some time and investment and make it a beautiful home. You can then sit back and relax knowing you're part of the housing boom.


If your requirements are specific, you may never find a home.

Annie1960

Speak to the structural engineer on the phone and ask how serious the problems are. Then you will have a better idea whether they are routine issues typical of a house that age, or something more sinister.

LisaLou1982

Another thing to remember is that you arent buying a new house. All properties need money spending on them to some degree. The older the house, the more likely the cost is to increase.

But you buy an old house because you love it and you accept that things will always need to be done to maintain them. After all, if you dont want to spend a penny on maintenance then buy a new build, but dont be surprised when you also need to spend money on that too.

AdrianC

List the bad stuff here, quoting the survey's exact wording - then people can tell you whether it really is "run screaming" or just backside-covering.

If it really is bad enough to walk, then the costs incurred so far are your problem. Welcome to house buying.

Horseygirl123

I_have_spoken wrote: »

Pretty much anything pre-war will have these issues

My sister's executive new build is far more shoddily built than my 1920's detached. My engineer husband winces when he looks at wonky door frames, bannister which actually moves, the list goes on.

Our original slate roof is still in good nick, no damp whatsoever, no dry rot or woodworm. It'll still be standing when all these new builds have blown away. All in all the house has cost us very little in the 25 years we have been here.

Pandilex

Thanks everyone for your advice and help.

Have asked the structural engineer to call me for a chat to talk through it so I can get some idea of the severity and perhaps cost. I do agree that reports can be alarming but it does sound pretty rough. I will post the specifics a bit later when I have had another look through. The place was built around 1900s I think and the current vendor bought it 7-8 years ago. It's had some repairs and stuff done to it as well as modifications and the solicitor has told me they are still waiting to get the results of a search back to tell me if the modifications have been authorised or not which will be critical I think as the surveyor said there are potential structural issues unless there is supporting documentation to say it's been officially signed off.

As much as I would like to happily walk away, there is -nothing- going in Bristol and I paid way above asking price to secure this. I hit all my old searches (rightmove, zoopla, and 4 individual estate agents) to see and there was -nothing- at all, literally zero properties. Rightmove showed 0 properties in the last 14 days :S :S :S

I don't want to walk away but the issues do look quite bad but I can't post the details at the mo so will put them a bit later. Really though the structural engineer that inspected it is going to be the one to tell me the severity and if I should just abandon ship

Solicitor said I should forward the report to the owner so they can see there are issues and they will hopefully then know that the problems exist regardless of the buyer. I feel a bit reluctant to simply do this cos I paid a lot for that report but perhaps it's for the best.