Back boiler, single glazing and old electrics......

whoschuffed

Been looking at buying a house and really like one in particular. After 2 viewings a few things have cropped up and i'm having difficulty deciding on if these should impact on what we offer for the property! I know there's no "science" to this kind of thing and a house is only worth what you're willing to pay for it, but i'd welcome some extra eyes and thoughts on it.

The house has a back boiler heating system - I'm told it still works perfectly fine but I know this kind of system isn't fitted anymore and so getting parts can be a nightmare, and they aren't very economical/efficient compared to modern combi's. But its something that will have been in the house for many many years.

Very old consumer unit - this leads me to believe no work has been carried out on the electrics at all - how do you tell if electrics are of a good condition? Can you just replace the consumer unit or do you have to replace all wiring etc? Is something like this a cause for alarm? Would it allow some negotiation on the price?

Single glazing in kitchen - 3 windows in kitchen are wooden framed single glazed units. They are in good condition however i'm just wondering if it's going to be something I need to get swapped out as it will no doubt leaves the kitchen very cold and wont keep much noise out.

On the whole the house is very clean and well kept but just these few things are niggling me.

ess0two

You could probably haggle over a new consumer unit,everything else works but would be nice to be updated?

martin.cat

The house price may already reflect the issues you mention

Electrics in theory you can replace just the consumer unit but it will depend if the circuits comply.

What I did was work through house room by room to have enough sockets etc. that way you can hide cables under fresh plaster and paint rather than use surface mount plastic trunking.

I've found even 10 20 year old house need the electrics upgrading so it wouldn't put me off

As for boiler you are lucky at £2k but the gree deal is hopefully coming back which will help you pay for it. Also it pays for itself, ours halved the gas bill so payback was about 3 years

Windows wise glaring units fail after about 10 years. I was amassed how many house that we viewed had failed units. I would approach one at a time as you do that room up. They also will be more energy efficient too

dj1471

Ask how old the boiler is and when it was last serviced. If it's been well maintained then there should be no need to replace it.

How old is the consumer unit? If it's 60s or older then it (and the wiring) probably need to be replaced. If your wiring is OK then you can just replace the consumer unit, but there may be no need.

There's some useful information here: http://www.electricalsafetyfirst.org.uk/guides-and-advice/around-the-home/how-safe-is-your-home/
(under How old is your wiring?)

Ask if they've had any issues with the electrics. If in doubt pay an electrician for an Electrical Installation Condition Report (EICR) once you have an accepted offer. This will cost you in the region of £100 but realistically you'll need one if you intend to renegotiate on price.

If you will feel the need to replace the single glazing then factor this into your offer, but I wouldn't expect the vendor to accept a reduction in price due to this.

whoschuffed

These are all questions we've put to the estate agent to find out off the vendor so hopefully will have a bit more clarity on things before we put an offer in.

Argghhh

single glazing does not fail as it is just 1 single piece of glass - it will be very cold in the kitchen and there will be a lot of internal condensation - warmth of cooking hitting cold single glass = lots of condensation / possible damp

dimbo61

Modern houses have double glazing, combi boilers, good insulation
They also have small gardens, tiny rooms and no parking!
Older houses may have bigger rooms, long driveways/garages, big gardens
They may also have old electrics, old heating systems and single glazing.
You can see the property and all its faults as well as Plus points !
Take into account the works you need to do and upgrades you might want with your offer !
I bought a 1930,s semi and we spent £££££ on bring the property up to modern standards. Extension two years later and still spending money now.
Good sized rooms, two modern bathrooms, huge kitchen/dinner+lounge.
Smaller garden but less garden to look after.

Mickygg

What you list are not major issues. Unless you buy new most houses will have issues that need dealing with. You can't expect to chop off £xxk for everything that needs updating.
Do your own research as to what you believe the house is worth taking into account the money needed to update the place. That's how much the house is worth to you.

enthusiasticsaver

It depends on how old the house is and whether the price already reflects the fact it may need some modernisation. As others have said, old electrics, windows which need replacing and outdated boilers/heating systems do have to be expected in an older house unless it has gone through complete refurbishment. Check on what other houses in the same area have sold for and what condition they are in. Ultimately it is how much you consider you will have to spend on essential repairs and whether it is worth trying to get the price down or if it has already been taken account of in the initial valuation. Most people expect to be knocked down a bit anyway when putting a house up for sale unless it is in a very desirable or expensive area.