PLEASE READ BEFORE POSTING: Hello Forumites! In order to help keep the Forum a useful, safe and friendly place for our users, discussions around non-MoneySaving matters are not permitted per the Forum rules. While we understand that mentioning house prices may sometimes be relevant to a user's specific MoneySaving situation, we ask that you please avoid veering into broad, general debates about the market, the economy and politics, as these can unfortunately lead to abusive or hateful behaviour. Threads that are found to have derailed into wider discussions may be removed. Users who repeatedly disregard this may have their Forum account banned. Please also avoid posting personally identifiable information, including links to your own online property listing which may reveal your address. Thank you for your understanding.

Homebuyer Report - Thoughts?

Hi all

We've had our Homebuyer Report back, with a couple of red flags mainly to do with the roof and party wall.

House is a 1950s semi.

Roof Coverings
There is however evidence of problems with the underlying roof timbers. The roof tiles are showing evidence of 'roof spread' where the purlins and hip rafters have moved due to insufficient support. Please see section F1 for further explanation of this defect.

There are many slipped and defective tiles, in particular to the front and side elevation. This now requires repair. You are advised to instruct a roofing specialist to inspect the roof structure and coverings to provide you with a report outlining the necessary repairs together with an indication of the costs.

Roof Structure
The wall between this and the neighbouring dwelling (called the party wall) is partly missing and could allow fire to pass from one property to another. The wall should be built up and any gaps to the underside of the roof covering sealed soon. The owner of the neighbouring property has a number of legal rights over this party wall. You should check with your legal adviser before you organise any work (see section I2).

There is however evidence of roof spread. This has occurred where the hip rafters have been inadequately supported causing undue pressure on the wall plate. The purlin to the front of the property has visibly dropped. The roof requires stabilisation now via additional support and the use of dragon ties. This should be repaired now.

You are advised to instruct a roofing specialist to inspect the roof structure and coverings to provide you with a report outlining the necessary repairs together with an indication of the costs.

Overall opinion of the property
This property is considered to be a reasonable proposition for purchase at a price of £120,000 provided that you are prepared to accept the cost and inconvenience of dealing with the various repair/improvement works reported. These deficiencies are common in properties of this age and type. Provided that the necessary works are carried out to a
satisfactory standard, I see no reason why there should be any special difficulty on resale in normal market conditions.

Offered £120k originally; valued at £118k.

So where do we go from here? Any advice/thoughts/opinions as always are greatly appreciated folks :o
«1

Comments

  • G_M
    G_M Posts: 51,977 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Name Dropper Combo Breaker
    Ask (pay) a roofing company to inspect the roof, and supprting joists, and quote for repair.
  • G_M wrote: »
    Ask (pay) a roofing company to inspect the roof, and supprting joists, and quote for repair.

    Hi G_M

    Thanks for your reply... I did think this what we're going to have to do and then go from there, but glad that we're doing the right thing!

    Being FTB's and new to all of this, it's a minefield to know what's right/wrong, what our responsibilities are and what are the vendor's...

    It's just a bit crap really because if the cost is a good few thousand ££s, we are going to struggle paying for it because even though the seller may reduce the asking price, we won't have £1000s in cash to pay for the work :( e.g. say it's £5k to sort, purchase price goes from £120k to £115k, 10% deposit is only £500 less so still have to find £4,500 to pay for repairs.

    The vendor is a builder by trade so may have contacts who could get the repair done - would anyone suggest asking the vendor to have the repairs done and keep the purchase price at £120k?

    What a headache!
  • G_M
    G_M Posts: 51,977 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Name Dropper Combo Breaker
    PinkLady25 wrote: »
    Hi G_M

    - would anyone suggest asking the vendor to have the repairs done and keep the purchase price at £120k?
    Not unless you also pay a surveyor to oversee ad check the work done.

    The vendor will have no incentive/reason to do a proper job - he'll do it as quickly/cheaply as possible. He'll replace some slipped tiles so it looks OK, and not worry about the joist supports. After all, when the roof collapses i 2016 he'll be long gone.......n
  • G_M wrote: »
    Not unless you also pay a surveyor to oversee ad check the work done.

    The vendor will have no incentive/reason to do a proper job - he'll do it as quickly/cheaply as possible. He'll replace some slipped tiles so it looks OK, and not worry about the joist supports. After all, when the roof collapses i 2016 he'll be long gone.......n

    Hi G_M

    Again, you've pretty much confirmed my thoughts on this... who's to say the work will completed to the correct standard!

    Husband has just let me know that we've had a letter stating the following:

    Matters considered essential as a condition of mortgage:
    - There are a number of repairs required to slipped or defective roof tiles.
    - There is some cracking around windows that requires remedial attention.
    - Minor voids to the party wall in the roof voids requires sealing in the interests of fire safety.

    Now it's a case of negotiating on price to accommodate for these repairs?

    So we need a roofer to give us a cost for the roof repairs, am I correct in getting a quote not just for the tiles but also the structural issue aswell? Would the roofer be able to quote for the sealing of the gap in the party wall aswell?

    And a separate quote for the repairs to the cracks around the windows? The windows have been replaced, survey suggest this being the reason for the cracks.

    Thanks again!
  • Definitely get the roofer to quote for all works, not just the ones essential as a condition of your mortgage. This should give you an idea of how vital the other work is and what it will cost. I would be looking at a reduction to cover the full costs.

    Unfortunately if you're deposit is 10% then I guess that puts you right on an LTV threshold with no real scope to increase your LTV and keep back some of your deposit to pay for works.

    Having the vendor pay for the repairs isn't an option I'd rule out completely but you'll want to have the repaired work surveyed and see all documentation relating to the repairs.
  • Definitely get the roofer to quote for all works, not just the ones essential as a condition of your mortgage. This should give you an idea of how vital the other work is and what it will cost. I would be looking at a reduction to cover the full costs.

    Unfortunately if you're deposit is 10% then I guess that puts you right on an LTV threshold with no real scope to increase your LTV and keep back some of your deposit to pay for works.

    Having the vendor pay for the repairs isn't an option I'd rule out completely but you'll want to have the repaired work surveyed and see all documentation relating to the repairs.

    Thanks TheCyclingProgrammer.

    I spoke with the EA yesterday who said as there is a £2k under valuation, she would get a roofing specialist to look at the house and provide us with a report.

    But she did say she would not be prepared to ask the vendor to negotiate on the price to put right any works other than those needed as a condition of the mortgage. Now to me, if the works needed to walls and what's needed immediately to remedy the roof come to more than £2k, I would expect the EA to then speak with the vendor and we try to negotiate for them to cover the full costs?

    Also, seeing as the work needed is a condition of the mortgage, does this mean they won't give us the mortgage until the work is completed? If so, it will have to be the vendor carrying out the repairs surely as we aren't going to pay for repairs to a house we don't yet own? Lender is Skipton.

    I'm so stressed by not knowing how this is all meant to be working :(
  • G_M
    G_M Posts: 51,977 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Name Dropper Combo Breaker
    PinkLady25 wrote: »
    I spoke with the EA yesterday who said as there is a £2k under valuation, she would get a roofing specialist to look at the house and provide us with a report.
    NO NO NO!
    The estate agent works for the seller, not you. The EA just wants the sale to go ahead.

    Select your own, independant, roofer not someone in the EA's pocket.


    But she did say she would not be prepared to ask the vendor to negotiate on the price to put right any works other than those needed as a condition of the mortgage.
    It is not her decision. YOU decide what you are willing to pay for the property now, in the light of new information, and tell the EA (copy letter to seller if you wish).
    Then it is up to the seller to agree, negotiate, or refuse.

    It is NOT th EA's decision. They are conning you.


    Also, seeing as the work needed is a condition of the mortgage, does this mean they won't give us the mortgage until the work is completed?
    Possibly. Often they 'retain' an amount = to the cost of the work, and then release it after the work is done.
    ask the lender.

    No one will expect you to do the work before you own the property.

    Speak to the Skipton.

    Do not trust the EA. They are friendly, but they are not your friend.
  • G_M wrote: »
    No one will expect you to do the work before you own the property.

    Speak to the Skipton.

    Do not trust the EA. They are friendly, but they are not your friend.

    Hi G-M

    I've got in touch with our broker to ask them to clarify Skipton's stance on the mortgage as it does appear that it's a £2k retention rather than an lower valuation. I'm a bit dense when it comes to the retention side of things - how will this affect us in money terms? If the seller agrees to drop the price, what does this mean then? Sorry for asking what may seem daft questions but I don't want the EA conning us as I suspect from her responses so far she is trying to (she knows we are FTBs, unsure of how things go etc - unfortunately for us!!)

    I did wonder about letting the EA arrange for the roof to be looked at - is there any harm in allowing them to do their own and getting someone on our side to also look and see how the reports compare?

    Finally, with regards to negotiating on price - I have told EA that if the work to the roof is going to be substantial in cost and time/inconvenience, then we will need to discuss this with the seller because the price we offered was the most we would consider paying for the house assuming that it was in good condition and no major works needed doing to it.

    Thank you again, it really is appreciated!
  • PinkLady25
    PinkLady25 Posts: 55 Forumite
    edited 2 April 2015 at 12:04PM
    Hi all

    As an update to this thread, could really do with some input into the situation.

    Got a quote from a roofer for the roof and party wall repair - £900 all in. So £1,100 less than the suggested £2k retention.

    As per above the seller agreed to have the necessary works completed at the advice of the EA as one of the issues was a fire safety risk if left unrepaired. Fast forward a number of weeks later, we paid for the surveyor to re-inspect the property to ensure the works had been completed to standard. EA assured us seller had received copies of the reports and letter outlining the necessary repairs to be made, and seller had advised works were being completed. Re-inspection carried out this Monday gone (30/3/15).

    We have just received word from broker saying that Skipton have *finally* offered us a mortgage, but with a £1k retention as "no repair works have been carried out."

    So understandably, me and husband are so p*ssed off! If we proceed with the sale, we're going to have to finance the repairs and have time off work, plus we've had the hassle of seller "completing works" rather than just agreeing to a reduction in asking price to begin with. It's been such a long winded process, and to add insult to injury we wasted money paying for the re-inspection which was basically pointless as the report says the repairs haven't even been done, so nothing to re-inspect!!

    What would you do in this situation?!

    Thanks in advance folks!
  • DRP
    DRP Posts: 4,287 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 1,000 Posts Name Dropper Combo Breaker
    PinkLady25 wrote: »

    What would you do in this situation?!

    Probably give them an ultimatum to exchange at a lower price (preferable) or you will pull out.

    They're obviously taking the pi** and it has already left you out of pocket.
This discussion has been closed.
Meet your Ambassadors

🚀 Getting Started

Hi new member!

Our Getting Started Guide will help you get the most out of the Forum

Categories

  • All Categories
  • 350.3K Banking & Borrowing
  • 252.9K Reduce Debt & Boost Income
  • 453.2K Spending & Discounts
  • 243.3K Work, Benefits & Business
  • 597.8K Mortgages, Homes & Bills
  • 176.6K Life & Family
  • 256.3K Travel & Transport
  • 1.5M Hobbies & Leisure
  • 16.1K Discuss & Feedback
  • 37.6K Read-Only Boards

Is this how you want to be seen?

We see you are using a default avatar. It takes only a few seconds to pick a picture.