Mortgage for a 2005 built steel-frame house

muhandis

Hi all,

So the situation is that we are in the process of buying a mid-terrace 2005-built townhouse. Because my pay structure is slightly complicated, we went through a mortgage broker. Fast forward to 2 weeks later and we had a mortgage offer from Nationwide for a 90% LTV mortgage after they did a basic valuation.

For peace of mind, I commissioned a full building survey and met the surveyor at the property yesterday. When inspecting the loft he pointed out massive steel beams at the ends and mentioned that the property appears to be of non-standard construction ie a steel/metal frame with external brick work. For these kind of properties, the only way you can tell that they're non-standard is from the presence of metal beams in the loft area. Externally, they look just like any other traditional brick-built house.

So, he said it is up to me whether to inform the lender or not as some lenders are reluctant to lend on properties of non-standard construction. He also said that given that the property is only 9 years old, it shouldn't necessarily be an issue but that the lender will need to know the exact name of the construction type.

The surveyor said that the beams in the roof look to be in good shape. Unfortunately, without removing brickwork at the base, he wouldn't be able to give an opinion on the overall state of the metal frame.

Anyhow, I have now asked the vendor's estate agent to find out the name of the exact construction type so my broker can check if Nationwide have an issue with the same. I will wait for them to get back to me with this information before going to my broker with this news.

If the construction type does turn out to be one that mainstream lenders won't lend on or require a significantly lower LTV, we will ask for a hefty discount and if that isn't forthcoming, we will pass as it probably will be too much trouble selling it on later.

Sorry for the long story. I'd be grateful for any other tips or suggestions on how I should approach this matter.

Many thanks.

stator

It sounds like you are taking the right approach.

Buying the house without informing the lender would be a mistake.

muhandis

After all the time, money and effort spent on this process until now, for a fleeting moment it did cross my mind to not inform the lender and just see how it goes. But thankfully, better sense prevailed.

The last thing I want to do as an FTB is withhold material information regarding the purchase!

While googling on this subject, I came across the case of a buyer who (following the advice of his broker), steered clear of steel-frame houses and ended up buying a steel-frame house without himself or the lender Halifax knowing about it!

http://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk/forum/showthread.php?116388-Steel-Framed-properties-and-Halifax

stator wrote: »

Buying the house without informing the lender would be a mistake.

muhandis

A few hours after I emailed the estate agent telling him about my conversation with the surveyor and asking him for the name of the construction type was, the branch manager at the estate agent called me.

He sounded shocked that I would even suggest that the house might be of non-standard construction. He got quite defensive, said that no steel frame houses were built in that area after the 60s, started throwing some technical terms at me and said that the beams in the roof might just be to hold up the roof and that he had talked to Taylor Wimpey (original builders for the property) who said that it couldn't be a metal frame house.

I tried my best to remain calm and told him that if that was so, all I need is for him to confirm in writing that the house is of X construction type and we could proceed without any further enquiries. Not surprisingly, he didn't take me up on this offer.

Having reached a stalemate, he asked me to send him the relevant extract from the final report from the surveyor (due on Monday or Tuesday) and that if the report did suggest the possibility that it might be a steel frame house, we could get an invasive survey done - ie remove brickwork at the base to check if there is an underlying steel frame.

Phew, I'm getting tired of all this. Hopefully we will have a definite answer to the question of the steel-frame by the end of next week.

stator

It would be quite surprising to find a steel framed house built in 2005.

Have you looked up the planning application details on the council website? You might be able to tell what type of construction it is from the plans.

Have you seen in the loft yourself? You should be able to see what type of walls the roof structure is resting on, there shuoldn't be any need to make gueses.

muhandis

I did look long and hard on the council website to find the original planning application, wasn't successful.

I had at a peek at the roof cavity and saw the metal beams at the two ends which the surveyor was referring to. I don't know the technical term for the same.

The estate agent said that he would talk to the surveyor to get more details. Hopefully things will get clearer once we have the survey report.

I dug into the Taylor Wimpey website to see if they say anything about the construction types that they use and came across this -

"The walls in your home are either timber frame or metal frame or block construction, lined with plasterboard."

https://www.taylorwimpey.co.uk/customer-service/enjoying-your-home/your-home-inside-and-out/walls-and-ceilings

stator wrote: »

It would be quite surprising to find a steel framed house built in 2005.

Have you looked up the planning application details on the council website? You might be able to tell what type of construction it is from the plans.

Have you seen in the loft yourself? You should be able to see what type of walls the roof structure is resting on, there shuoldn't be any need to make gueses.