Damp survey seems expensive

Notsram

Hi,

I'm in the process of selling my house. Found a buyer, who had a homebuyers report prepared for her.

This flagged up some minor damp issues, so she got a local damp specialist in.

The specialist came round, carried out the survey and told me at the time that there was damp present, but that it was at perfectly natural levels for a house this age (over 100 years old), and that any repairs would be minor and inexpensive.

I've now been sent his quote, which recommends removing all skirting boards, all the kitchen units, injecting silicon gel to the walls and removing all plaster to a height of one metre - for almost the entire ground floor of the house.

This doesn't seem very minor or (at a cost of almost £2,000) very inexpensive either.

Interestingly, the one room where we thought there might be damp problems - the bathroom (which is an extension at the back of the house) - was the only room where he didn't find any damp.

As far as I'm aware there are no damp problems in the house. I've lived there for over 20 years and (slight discolouration to one external wall aside), never had a problem. Bearing in mind that I live in one of the wettest regions of England (Cumbria), I think I'd be aware if there was a problem as serious as this.

I have a feeling that they've quoted for far more work than is necessary here. Anyone got any advice, or been in a similar situation?

AlexMac

Other posters here will criticise the salespeople who claim to be surveyors but are really only there to sell expensive, so-called damp treatments. While £2k seems about right for that much work, I agree with your hunch that this is probably over-priced and unneccesary in a well-ventilated and heated old house with no obvious signs or smells of damp!

The problem is, having believed there is a problem invented by the 'raas covering' Homebuyers' report, and having taken advice from a Cowboy damp-proofer, your buyer will now assume they should follow it. So you might end up having to bite the bullet and compromise- maybe by offering to cover 50% of the costs.

But as the treatment proposed is going to be very dirty, duty and disruptive for the incoming owner (unless they don't have to move in immediately and can get it done fast after completion and before the move) you could try to get them to see sense? Look at advice on the SPAB website - https://www.spab.org.uk and articles at https://www.homebuilding.co.uk and maybe try to re-educate them:

For example at http://www.homebuilding.co.uk/advice/existing-homes/renovating/causes-of-damp which disses injected DPCs as follows:

"Injected Damp-Proof Course

Designed for use in dry walls, this type of treatment is incapable of working when installed in a wall that is already damp. They use either waxy creams that just form individual ‘fingers’ when injected, or chemicals dissolved in a water-based solvent. The solvents must completely evaporate away after injection to allow the chemicals to cure and form a water-repellent coating.

If a wall is damp, the solvents never completely dry out and the chemicals never cure; the process will just saturate the wall with even more water.

The walls may be replastered with a waterproof cement plaster to try and hide any damp for the duration of the guarantee. This stops the natural movement of moisture — making any damp problems worse. "

Damp jobs do work in that new render and plaster is obviously better than old in keeping back the 'natural' moisture present in every old wall. The mumbo jumbo about injecting magical chemeicals is just smoke and mirrors to justify the fee.

But I wouldn't hold my breath at the prospect of making your buyer see sense.

Faced with a similar problem in a Victorian House, we compromised and knocked a few quid off- although that damp was real in that it had undermined some timber

Notsram

Thanks for such a detailed reply, Alex!

And yes, I agree that the price does seem reasonable IF that much work is required.

The damp proofing company (Damp Stop) don't seem to be cowboys. They seem to cover pretty much the whole of the north of England and have been going for a number of years, so I'd assume they're pretty reputable.

My partner and I have already decided that we'll have to make it a condition of us contributing to the cost of the work that we've moved out before it's done. Even if it wasn't going to be dirty and unpleasant, I have asthma, so staying there with all the work going on isn't really an option. The lady buying our house is buying it as a rental property rather than to live in, so hopefully she'll be agreeable to this.

I'm not sure as yet how much I'll be able to offer towards having the damp proofing done. Of course, the property we're (hopefully!) buying has had damp flagged up by the surveyor, so we're currently awaiting the results of a damp report there (although by Rentokil, rather than Damp Stop) and hoping that it's not going to be too expensive!

Nobbie1967

Offer to pay for an independent damp report, rather than one from a company selling DPCs. May cost you a couple of hundred quid, but would be a good way of pointing out if anything actually needs to be done. I'm assuming the one the buyer got was 'free'

Discuss this with the buyer before getting it done as I'm sure they don't want the disruption of any unnecessary work.

Notsram

Thanks Nobbie,

No, the buyers report wasn't free, she paid for it. But might not be a bad idea to get another report from someone else.

I'm due to speak to the buyer in the next couple of days (hopefully, I'll have the report on the house I'm buying by then so I'll be in a better position to know how much I can afford) so I'll discuss it with her and see what she says.

rosie383

Would it not be easier to get your own independent report (not by a company that sells treatments) and compare the two. Then if the work is necessary and is going to cost £x, accept that reduction in her offer. If there is a huge difference in the two estimates, perhaps get your conveyancer to negotiate a middle ground.
Then let her get on with the purchase, you move out as planned, then she can get the work done herself once purchase is complete. Much less hassle for you and less risk to your health.

Hoploz

If she is buying it to rent out she will not have the work done.

If you're able to do so, offer her a discount of 1k so she feels she's the winner and just take it on the chin. It saves her threatening to pull out.

Notsram

Depending how much money I actually have left once everything else is paid for then yes, I was thinking of £1,000 too. I think if I just offer her cash (obviously with a receipt), rather than a discount on the purchase price - this has already dragged on for long enough - then it's up to her whether she gets the work done or not.

rosie383

That might actually seem more of an incentive for her. Cash in the hand will always be more tempting than a grand off the purchase price.

Hoploz

No, do it all properly, don't offer some dodgy cash deal. It's not up to you to make things go smoothly - she's the one putting the spanner in the works here, youve lived there 20 years with no problems at all! If she wants it quickly then she won't bother faffing around with discounts and will go ahead regardless. Give her the £1000 discount as a last resort rather than her pulling out - you're doing her a favour!

Notsram

I'll have to discuss it with her and see what she says. She does seem like a pretty reasonable person. We've already agreed to sort this out between ourselves rather than have it trail through the estate agents, although that was before I knew it was going to cost the best part of £2,000 to fix.

I'd imagine she will be in touch in the next day or so. Her sale in London completed today, so she'll have the cash for my house available now.