House purchase - thoughts on old boiler

DS_livewire

We are looking to exchange contracts soon on a 1990's 2 bed. Our survey pointed out that the Gas boiler was without service or safety certificate. Upon investigation we have noted that the boiler is in excess of 20 years old. Presumably the boiler originally put in when the house was built.

The particular boiler in question would be very difficult to repair as parts are seemingly not available any more.

As we are stretching to afford the house as is the need for potential boiler replacement concerns us.

Just wondering what MSE forumers thoughts would be in this scenario as to whether it would be worth reducing the offer slightly to compensate for a boiler that is well past its useful lifespan?

Or would this be an un-usual request?

Its our first house purchase - so we're all new to this!

xylophone

My Potterton Netaheat (serviced annually by the installers) is 28 this year - it has required parts on a couple of occasions but still works perfectly.

G_M

I bought my house wth a boiler of indeterminate age. The manufacturer said they stopped producing them 24 years earlier so it was at least that old. I kept it for around 10 years before replacement.

You need to budget for replacement. If you are so stretched financially, I suggest you are extending yourelf too far.

You can certainly reduce your offer, at any time up to Exchange, but if the boiler is working, and is reliabale, and the seller's have had no concerns with it, they are unlikely to agree to your proposed reduction.

stator

xylophone wrote: »

My Potterton Netaheat (serviced annually by the installers) is 28 this year - it has required parts on a couple of occasions but still works perfectly.

Had one of them die a couple years ago. They work well until they don't

Is the old boiler a combi boiler or does the house also have a water tank and immersion heater?
If it's a combi boiler then that's good news as a like-for-life boiler replacement could be done. You'd still need to budget for a few thousand. Would you be able to get credit if the boiler died and you needed a new one? The Green Deal is available on old boilers, but I believe the old one needs to be working. You could possibly use that to upgrade the boiler after you move in and the cost would be spread accross your energy bills for a few years.
If it's not a combi boiler then you would usually consider upgrading to a combi boiler when it dies, which includes extra costs of moving the plumbing about. You don't have to do that, but combi is recommended these days.

Loopy28

I have an 11 year old boiler and after it broke down recently was told it has got a year left in it as most. So I think a boiler can break down at any age.

You could ask solicitors to request they have a boiler service prior to moving in. They might or might not agree but worth a shot.

DS_livewire

stator wrote: »

Is the old boiler a combi boiler or does the house also have a water tank and immersion heater?
.

The house has its own water tank - and its a Myson Apollo boiler, so its not a combi. Which would put it in the upper end of cost if it needed replacement I think?

Hoploz

Have a safety check/service if you're concerned. There are no guarantees whatever the age of the boiler. And even with a new boiler, there are many other parts which can go wrong with heating systems (my boiler was fixed after it went wrong a week after moving in, then a week later a pump went - bad luck!)

This kind of thing is all part of home ownership. Things break down, you find the funds one way or another to repair them.

xylophone

Had one of them die a couple years ago. They work well until they don't

Indeed - I shall say farewell with regret!

jennifernil

xylophone wrote: »

My Potterton Netaheat (serviced annually by the installers) is 28 this year - it has required parts on a couple of occasions but still works perfectly.

We have the same boiler. Ours will soon be 27 years old and has never had anything wrong with it. They don't make them like they used to!!

I would not consider a combi to be an "upgrade". I would not want one.

In our (5 bed) house, with 3 bathrooms, it would not be suitable anyway

jennifernil

When houses are sold in England (presumably), does the price asked not reflect the age/condition of the plumbing/heating/electrics/kitchen/bathroom?

I would expect it to.

Our house is 26+ years old, pretty much everything in it is original, and still works perfectly as we chose good quality stuff.

However, I do realise that it is out of date/probably less efficient/not to today's taste, so I would expect to have to take this into account when setting a price if selling.

stator

DS_livewire wrote: »

The house has its own water tank - and its a Myson Apollo boiler, so its not a combi. Which would put it in the upper end of cost if it needed replacement I think?

Yes it depends on what you want. If you just want to swap it for another heat only boiler then you can still do this, they make non-combi boilers. If you don't mind having a hot water tank and being able to run out of hot water there's nothing wrong with it.
However to improve the resale of your house a combi would be a good idea and I would definitely always want a combi boiler in my house
Modern condensing boilers are a lot more efficient, so replacing a really old one with a new one will save you money in the long term.