Red And Amber Survey Warnings

Vagabond3

Hello All. Any advice on this scenario?

I'm buying a house which was built in the 1940s. I've had a homebuyer survey carried out and the surveyor has come up with a whole heap of recommendations for further investigations before agreeing to a purchase.

I have asked for the red warnings to be dealt with by the owner of the property. Is it reasonable to ask for the amber warnings to be dealt with as well? I don't want to jeopardise the purchase or unnecessarily prolong it.

The red warnings include electrical, gas, water and heating checks by specialists as well as the replacement of rotten timber frames.

The amber warnings include recommendations that asbestos and damp specialists should investigate the property before proceeding further.

A friend said that surveyors often throw in as many warnings as possible to cover their backs if there is a problem in future and the amber ones should not be taken so seriously.

I clearly don't want to disrupt or delay the purchase but want to make sure I'm not storing up a lot of trouble for myself in the future too.

Thanks for any advice.

Browntoa

All reports come back with those generic "warnings" as they don't test any of those items and don't want any comeback


theres a possibility of asbestos in older properties , particularly ex council stock

davidmcn

Vagabond3 wrote: »

I have asked for the red warnings to be dealt with by the owner of the property. Is it reasonable to ask for the amber warnings to be dealt with as well? I don't want to jeopardise the purchase or unnecessarily prolong it.

I wouldn't say it was normally reasonable to expect the owner to do any of the items - it's your survey, if you want further investigations done (which as your friend has pointed out aren't necessarily vital) then it's up to you. Maintenance points are mainly your "to do" list for after you've moved in. You can try adjusting the price if you think it's warranted.

Ithaca

You may have some scope to negotiate a price drop if the timber frames are genuinely on their last legs, but all the checks on electrics / heating etc should be down to you. I wouldn't be asking the vendor to change the windows - you'd have no control over style or quality so much better to put it on your "get done as soon as we move in" list having reduced the price accordingly (assuming the house hasn't already been priced with these defects in mind).

You could ask to see evidence of e.g. a recent boiler service, and if they've had any electrical work done recently they should have certification available, but all that tells you is that it was OK at a point in time with no guarantees as to the condition now.

On the asbestos and damp warnings... were there any specific areas called out (e.g. "There is evidence of water penetrating from the upstairs guttering which has caused damp walls"), or was it a generic "Some houses get damp; this is a house; therefore it might have damp" warning?

ThePants999

If I were your vendor, and you came to me insisting that I got "electrical, gas, water and heating checks by specialists" because your survey had the usual boilerplate crud from the surveyor of "I'm not an electrician / gas engineer / plumber so I can't verify these", I'd not only tell you to do one, I'd consider putting the house back on the market in the hope of finding a buyer with more of a clue.

The survey is for your benefit so you know what you're buying. If it highlights items that need work, factor doing that work into your plans for the house; if they cause you to believe it's not worth the price you're paying, negotiate on the price or walk away. If it highlights uncertainty that warrants further investigation, arrange said further investigation yourself or proceed without it. None of it warrants any action by your vendor, and if for some reason you do agree with the vendor that they'll get repair work done, you can guarantee they'll do the cheapest slap-up job they can get away with, as it's not going to be theirs to live with.

My last survey recommended sending SIXTEEN different specialists to do further investigations, from the usual electricals/gas to a Japanese knotweed specialist to a ruddy "arboriculturist". Suffice it to say, surveys contain a certain amount of !!!!-covering...

Mickygg

The vendor will very rarely do any repairs. They get the all done that costs thousands and you could still pull out. No chance.
You would need to (if you felt it was a deal breaker) to try to negotiate a lower price.
Remember most houses come with work that needs doing.
They won't do electricity checks or asbestos checks. That's down to you if you want it and for you to pay for.
To add based on your demands I wouldn't be surprised if you lose the place! I'd be very tempted to drop anyone with these demands and find a more knowledgeable buyer.

tomatta

ThePants999 wrote: »

If I were your vendor, and you came to me insisting that I got "electrical, gas, water and heating checks by specialists" because your survey had the usual boilerplate crud from the surveyor of "I'm not an electrician / gas engineer / plumber so I can't verify these", I'd not only tell you to do one, I'd consider putting the house back on the market in the hope of finding a buyer with more of a clue.

The survey is for your benefit so you know what you're buying. If it highlights items that need work, factor doing that work into your plans for the house; if they cause you to believe it's not worth the price you're paying, negotiate on the price or walk away. If it highlights uncertainty that warrants further investigation, arrange said further investigation yourself or proceed without it. None of it warrants any action by your vendor, and if for some reason you do agree with the vendor that they'll get repair work done, you can guarantee they'll do the cheapest slap-up job they can get away with, as it's not going to be theirs to live with.

My last survey recommended sending SIXTEEN different specialists to do further investigations, from the usual electricals/gas to a Japanese knotweed specialist to a ruddy "arboriculturist". Suffice it to say, surveys contain a certain amount of !!!!-covering...

Genuine question - what's the point of a survey then? I'm in the middle of buying and I was planning to have a survey done, but if it's just a document covering themselves then is it really worth £500 or so??

Thanetia

Most important point of a survey is that is gives you an independent valuation of the property taking into account its condition at the time of survey. Any survey will always throw out standard caveats about what they can and can't check, and will suggest specialist checks on other areas where they are not experts - hence electrics will always come up expecially on an older property.

So as already said, down to purchaser to make themselves satisfied that they are checking what they need to. Check that the valuation confirms the agreed purchase price. Re the amber warnings, asbestos may well be present in older houses but is only really a probem if you are going to disturb it. If you are going to survey for damp make sure you get an independent survey, not one done by a "specialist" damp treatment company. Most suspected damp can be tracked down to identifiable problems - you can then determine what the fix is and how easy/difficult it might be.

Good luck with the purchase .....

Surrey_EA

Not all surveys will include a valuation report.

If you wish to have the surveyor provide a valuation of the property, make sure you confirm this at the time you book the survey.

GoldenShadow

I worry that people out there honestly think it's feasible to ask this of vendors. My house is a similar age and that is what you get with houses and especially ones of that kind of age. If you don't like it, buy a newbuild.

AnotherJoe

tomatta wrote: »

Genuine question - what's the point of a survey then? I'm in the middle of buying and I was planning to have a survey done, but if it's just a document covering themselves then is it really worth £500 or so??

I dont think so. Thats why i didnt get one on my last 3 houses.

Vagabond3 wrote: »

Hello All. Any advice on this scenario?

I'm buying a house which was built in the 1940s. I've had a homebuyer survey carried out and the surveyor has come up with a whole heap of recommendations for further investigations before agreeing to a purchase.
Yep, they always do.

I have asked for the red warnings to be dealt with by the owner of the property.
Is it reasonable to ask for the amber warnings to be dealt with as well?
Its not reasonable to ask for the red ones, let alone the amber ! Suppose they do a shoddy job on the windowsills? Get a useless specialist to check the electrics?

I don't want to jeopardise the purchase or unnecessarily prolong it.
Oh I think its too late for that


The red warnings include electrical, gas, water and heating checks by specialists as well as the replacement of rotten timber frames.
*rs* covering.

The amber warnings include recommendations that asbestos and damp specialists should investigate the property before proceeding further.
*rs* covering.

A friend said that surveyors often throw in as many warnings as possible to cover their backs if there is a problem in future and the amber ones should not be taken so seriously.

And the red ones as well, if its just "I am not experienced in electric/gas/whatever so geta specialist in" type rubbish.

I clearly don't want to disrupt or delay the purchase but want to make sure I'm not storing up a lot of trouble for myself in the future too.

You've likely caused a lot of problems right now, if the vendor has their head screwed on they will be asking their EA to put it back on the market as their buyer is clueless and likely to panic