Removal of internal wall without building regs - buying

hollycall

Hello, I am just after some advice regarding buying a property that has had an (apparently) non-load bearing wall removed without building regs permission.

We've had an offer accepted on a great 1910 3-bed semi, perfect location, exactly what we want. We're first time buyers, quite far down the road now - mortgage approved, searches completed, buildings survey done. We're currently just waiting for results of a damp survey (which we're not too worried about), and want to complete as soon as possible, as we have a baby on the way in the next couple of months.

The seller (who bought the house to do up) disclosed early on that she had removed a non-load bearing wall just over a year ago under the advice of a structural engineer with no building regs consent (she had also had some patio doors and new windows put in without relevant certification). Our solicitor suggested indemnity insurance, which initially sounded fine to us, but having done a bit more digging around we are not completely happy with this, as it will offer us no protection if the work is unsound/unsafe. We have asked the seller if she has a guarantee of the work done, or a structural engineers report confirming that the wall was non-load bearing, and she said she doesn't; our full survey indicated that we should make sure a guarantee or building regs were in place.

We're not happy to proceed with just the indemnity insurance, as we have no assurances that the work is safe, and we're worried about potential issue when selling the property in the future. I can't understand why she wouldn't get the building regs when she apparently does this for a living (any ideas?) I think we will push for a structural engineer to confirm that the work is sound - should the seller be paying for this? What would you do? We don't want to pull out as, otherwise, the house is great, but we don't want to make a costly mistake, never mind the potential safety issues. Any advice greatly appreciated. Thanks!

Humphrey2012

Did you have a full structural survey? If so, did the surveyor indicate any signs of problems from the removal of the wall?

Personally, I would be happy with the indemnity. However I think your only other option would be to ask a structural engineer to assess this and make sure it's safe. I think this would be at your cost though as most investigations are paid for by the buyer.

Even take the indemnity (paid for by seller) and also get the surveyor?

Do you know how long ago it was removed? If it was say 10 years ago and there are no signs of a problem I would be even more reassured.

For re-sale, the indemnity will pass on to future buyers.

Obviously this is just my opinion, but it would seem a shame to walk away from an otherwise perfect house.

DebtFree2012

Don't try and guess why anyone did or didn't do anything, it makes no difference to your situation. At most, you could expect her to go halves but it depends if anyone else is interested in buying the house as she could just accept a sale elsewhere.

Gordon_Hose

The seller is obviously happy with the work, if you're unsure and want a structural engineer in to produce a report it'll be at your cost.

hollycall

Thanks for the replies.

The work was done almost exactly a year before the house was put on the market (work done in August 2014, house on market in Sept 2015). You can't take out indemnity insurance for this kind of thing until a year has passed apparently.

The structural surveyor said there was no signs of movement/distortion, but that doesn't really mean anything unless a structural engineer has looked at what support is there.

She's keen to exchange in the next few weeks, as are we, and I don't think there's any competition from other buyers, but obviously I don't know for sure. I don't feel that we're being unreasonable to want some assurances that the work she did is safe, but as first-time buyers I don't know if we're being unrealistic!

Humphrey2012

I think if you want the extra assurances, then a structural engineer would be the only way to go. I'm sure this will be at your cost though.

I would take the indemnity insurance too as this would be paid for by the seller and it can't do any harm to have it.

I don't think you are being unreasonable at all, but I do think that if you want more assurances than the indemnity, you'll have to be willing to pay for it.

Hopefully someone might come along here to give you an idea of what this might cost. Maybe seeing as you're asking them to investigate just one area of the house, it might not be too expensive?

hollycall

Thanks, yes hoping we can get our structural surveyor back around with a builder to "chip away" at the walls and confirm they're property supported. Seems to be a pretty common issue, just difficult to get our heads around as FTBs!

Humphrey2012

I can imagine as ftb it's disconcerting and not something you'd want to have to do. However, if it gives you peace of mind and allows you to enjoy your new home more then it's worth it.

I think you're absolutely right, it's very common and either the surveyor will say it's fine or that work needs to be done. If work needs to be done you can re-negotiate the price, or ask the seller to have the work done.

Thrugelmir

If the seller has no paperwork to support the work undertaken I'd be very dubious of their claims. No Fensa certificate either makes it sound like the work was done on the "cheap".

hollycall

That's my concern, Thrugelmir!

Dird

hollycall wrote: »

Thanks, yes hoping we can get our structural surveyor back around with a builder to "chip away" at the walls and confirm they're property supported. Seems to be a pretty common issue, just difficult to get our heads around as FTBs!

Have the vendors said they'll let a builder to damage the wall (removing plaster/decoration etc)?