What type of construction is this house?

GDB2222

jac_789 wrote: »

The house is apparently Wimpey No Fines construction. It is mortgageable, but nobody really knows whether it will be in 20 years time. It worries me that if WE get a mortgage on this property now, someone else might not when we want to sell, which would leave us with a property worth nothing!

That was my thought when I saw your post this morning. I think you need to do more research into why the Wimpey construction is currently mortgageable and then decide whether that is likely to continue and what the risks are.

Around here, London, unmortgageable properties go for around two thirds of the price of mortgageable ones. I assume that these houses you are looking at are a bit cheaper because of the non standard construction, but not the full discount?

stator

Wimpey no-fines is a perfectly acceptable type of house, made of concrete.
It will still be mortgageable when we're all dead. There are hundreds of thousands of them. You only need to get a survey done to check that the exterior has been maintained properly, ie not cracks left open for water to seep in etc.

However I am sceptical and don't think those houses are wimpey no-fines. They look much more like steel frame or PRC. Go on another viewing and have a look in the loft, take lots of photos. You can see in the loft if the walls are made of concrete and what supports the roof.


My advice would be to contact the local housing associate or council who own most of those houses. They were built by a council and they will know what type of construction they are, as they maintain half of them.