Shared chimney - neighbour's house repossessed

Litts

Hi everyone,

Bit of a strange situation, I've recently bought a house and in the homebuyers report it describes the rear chimney as stage 3 or urgently needing attention. There is some leaning and some of the bricks are chipped.

So I had a builder round on the weekend who advised that it needs to come down asap as it could collapse. He seemed alot more concerned than I was (he's not just looking to get the contract as he's my mother's friend from church).

I was looking to approach the new owner when they moved in/started renovating however, there is alot more urgency to get the majority of it taken down and properly finished (that breast is pretty damp so it would also prevent that)

Does anyone know if there is a legal obligation for the bank/reciever to share the cost of doing the work?

Any recommendations on what approach to take with the bank/reciever/estate agent?

I've attached a picture of the chimney so you have an idea what I'm talking about. My side is on the left.

brightontraveller

Litts wrote: »

Hi everyone,

Bit of a strange situation, I've recently bought a house and in the homebuyers report it describes the rear chimney as stage 3 or urgently needing attention. There is some leaning and some of the bricks are chipped.

So I had a builder round on the weekend who advised that it needs to come down asap as it could collapse. He seemed alot more concerned than I was (he's not just looking to get the contract as he's my mother's friend from church).

I was looking to approach the new owner when they moved in/started renovating however, there is alot more urgency to get the majority of it taken down and properly finished (that breast is pretty damp so it would also prevent that)

Does anyone know if there is a legal obligation for the bank/reciever to share the cost of doing the work?

Any recommendations on what approach to take with the bank/reciever/estate agent?

I've attached a picture of the chimney so you have an idea what I'm talking about. My side is on the left.

That depends on the current “owners” but as person you called around is a builder (going too church doesn’t make them qualified or honest either? ) Infact they should know what you can and can’t e.g. party wall act notices etc and what others require e.g insurance companies, receivers, banks etc I’d say doesn’t point at first as if they do know what they’re doing or at least told you if they do? Establish who’s responsible for maintaining neighbors property and what’s required i.e engineers report etc

Litts

brightontraveller wrote: »

That depends on the current “owners” but as person you called around is a builder (going too church doesn’t make them qualified or honest either? ) Infact they should know what you can and can’t e.g. party wall act notices etc and what others require e.g insurance companies, receivers, banks etc I’d say doesn’t point at first as if they do know what they’re doing or at least told you if they do? Establish who’s responsible for maintaining neighbors property and what’s required i.e engineers report etc

No, church doesn't make him honest but he's recently done some work for my parents to a high standard and that's why I've had him look at the house

He did advise me to speak to the estate agent to advise them of the issue (they're going to speak to the bank/receiver today and I will them speak to them directly). So I was looking to get ideas on the approach I should take.

I suppose the issue here is that the bank/receiver is currently in charge of the property but are trying to get rid of their liability. They are responsible for the maintenance I don't think they will have any problem with me doing the work as it will be helping to protect their asset (it could fall down onto the roof below and destroy the room underneath).

I do have a copy of the RICS Homebuyers report which highlights the issue so do have some leverage in that regard but it's a strange position to be in with them just wanting to get rid...

martinthebandit

Actually you may be in a better position because it's now owned by a bank/building society.

They will make their decision on what to do on a purely commercial basis, no emotional issues involved.

Litts

martinthebandit wrote: »

Actually you may be in a better position because it's now owned by a bank/building society.

They will make their decision on what to do on a purely commercial basis, no emotional issues involved.

I'm hoping that's the case so I want to give myself the best chance of convincing them to agree to split the cost.:)

david1951

The person you eventually deal with at the bank will be a whole lot more sensible than most property owners, so that is good.

You need to convince them that (a) the chimney is an immediate problem, (b) that you know the cause of the problem and (c) you have three quotes from reputable builders to fix the cause of the problem.

I think you have (a) done, but (b) and (c) are still TBC.

I'm no structural engineer, and neither is the builder, so not sure if knocking it down and building it again is going to solve (c).

Le_Kirk

Are either of the chimneys in use as a flue for a heater or boiler, in which case, consideration must be given to this.

Litts

david1951 wrote: »

The person you eventually deal with at the bank will be a whole lot more sensible than most property owners, so that is good.

You need to convince them that (a) the chimney is an immediate problem, (b) that you know the cause of the problem and (c) you have three quotes from reputable builders to fix the cause of the problem.

I think you have (a) done, but (b) and (c) are still TBC.

I'm no structural engineer, and neither is the builder, so not sure if knocking it down and building it again is going to solve (c).

Yeah, I think (a) and (b) have been done. This is the section of the report about the chimney concerned:

The stack is surmounted by a metal flue terminal. The junction between the stack and the roof coverings is sealed with lead flashings and Flashband tape.
 High damp readings were recorded on the chimney breasts internally.
 The stack is cracked and leaning slightly. The mortar pointing has also cracked and fallen away in places.
This is serious and could lead to further damp and damage to the property. This is a risk to the building, see Section J1. Condition Rating 3. Further Investigation.

And this is what it says about condition rating 3:

Repairs should be done as soon as possible. The speed of your response will depend on the nature of the problem. For example, repairs to a badly leaking roof or a dangerous gas boiler need to be carried out within a matter of hours, while other less important critical repairs could wait for a few days.

The chimney just needs taking down to a much lower level as it is quite tall and definitely top heavy as it goes out and back in at the top.

It's difficult to see the lean in the photograph but you can see the chunk out of one of the bricks (the one 2nd from the top of the straight bit on the left hand side)

Don't mind getting other quotes at all, really just want the contribution to getting it done so hopefully that'll be the only caveat they'll put on whether they will contribute

Litts

Le_Kirk wrote: »

Are either of the chimneys in use as a flue for a heater or boiler, in which case, consideration must be given to this.

He said that our boiler uses it as a flue as there's the silver chimney looking thing at the top of our side. There's nothing on theirs and looking at the pictures inside their house on rightmove, I can't see any reason why theirs would be using it, they have got a gas fire but that's attached to the house the otherside.

david1951

Litts wrote: »

Yeah, I think (a) and (b) have been done. This is the section of the report about the chimney concerned:

...

Don't mind getting other quotes at all, really just want the contribution to getting it done so hopefully that'll be the only caveat they'll put on whether they will contribute

OK sounds good. I used to work in estates at a bank so have some experience...they will almost certainly contribute 50%, but will probably need three quotes in addition to what you have as proof. They may even suggest their own builder although this is less likely. I would find a contact person ASAP so you have someone to deal with other than a call-centre.