Damp in 1890’s Terrace - will it put buyer off?

KittyCatty_2

We live in a mid 1890’s build Terrace.

We have lived here for 10 years, completely done house top to bottom, new bathroom, new kitchen, fully decorated, all floors and carpets done, new fencing etc.

We decided to sell in the summer as we are after a bigger property.

First time buyer came along and loved it, just his taste. STC within a few weeks.

We accepted an offer 3 grand under asking price, have offered to leave all appliances including my washer/dryer and various pieces of furniture as we know what its like to be a first time buyer.

Buyer had valuation survey, valued at price we accepted. Only comment in report was that the buyer might want to investigate damp, no further info, no details on rooms. My parents who were present when he carried out the survey told us he walked around for 10 mins, no damp meter etc, went outside for a few minutes then left.

Following the report from the surveyor buyers family have insisted on a damp survey, my estate agent advised they could arrange one through a company they use and despite my concerns it would just be a way to get money out of me they insteted they were reputable. This was free of charge.

I wasn’t aware of any damp in my house, no smell, no Mould, no tide marks etc a few patches of wall with bubbled paint i think from old water ingress but they were there we bought this!

To cut a long story short the estate agents damp surveyor came out with a meter, he told my partner we have patches of damp on the front and rear walls of the property, this is the older part of the house and not in the extension that was build in the 1970’s. He also said we have damp in the downstairs wall between the kitchen and living room, he said the meter said so, it is a load baring wall that goes into the foundations apparently. I can understand maybe the front and back walls but the intermediate wall? There are no tide marks on it, no bubbling paint, no rotten skirting boards.

I’m waiting for the damp report next week and have now got myself into a state about this. The surveyor told my hubby it will costs 100s to fix not 1000s but what are peoples options of this? Is it all a con?

Do you think this will put off my buyer? Me and partner are happy to negoatite if its a deal breaker and the surveyor stated work could be easily done.

Margot123

I wouldn't be worrying too much about it.

A prospective buyer must consider the age of your property. Even relatively new properties can have damp but one as old as yours will most certainly have it.

Damp meters can detect the slightest moisture, and would do so on most surfaces. I do wonder if this is all part of a bigger picture to get a few extra quid out of you.

If it's not a major issue, then genuine buyers won't worry about it given the age of the property.

ACG

If there are damp patches visible then the surveyors is trained to pick up on them, damp meter reader or not. However, unless your parents walked around with the surveyor, they may not have known. The damp meter reader is quite small and takes seconds for a reading... they may have even missed him do it as it is quite quick.

But if the lender is happy to lend, then it is just down to negotiation.

Davesnave

Margot123 wrote: »

If it's not a major issue, then genuine buyers won't worry about it given the age of the property.

But this is a FTB, who may well be clueless, unfortunately.

Any 'free' survey is just a cover for a company touting for business, and of course they will find damp. Next, they will be wanting to inject the property with a chemical DPC. I wonder how much their kick-back was from the EA? The latter have done you no favours.

A clued-up buyer pays for a damp and timber specialist to assess the property, not a damp treatment company. The experienced buyer will know that Victorian or Edwardian houses usually show readings on those blessed meters, but that it's not necessarily anything to be concerned about.

It doesn't sound as if there is anything seriously amiss, so don't be persuaded that there is.

anselld

Never trust an estate agent or a damproofing salesperson.

Ignore report and stand firm on agreed price. Hopefully the EA was not stupid enough to offer the report to the buyers.

G_M

Oh dear oh dear!

KittyCatty wrote: »

...... Only comment in report was that the buyer might want to investigate damp, no further info, no details on rooms.

.......my estate agent advised they could arrange one through a company they use and despite my concerns it would just be a way to get money out of me they insteted they were reputable. This was free of charge.

.

So a[STRIKE] surveyor[/STRIKE] salesman from a damp proofing company came out and, surprise surprise, recomended work that his company could provide!

You have fallen for the oldest and most regular trick in the book.

Most surprising is your EAs recommendation - they should be trying to facilitate the sale (both for your sake as their client and for their commission) but instead seem to be making problems by not recommending a truly independent damp surveyor or dissuading the buyer from the need for a damp survey.

Yes of course it will put off the buyer! FTBs in particular panic at the word 'damp'. You will now have to reduce your price or lose your buyer.


Personally I'd lose the buyer, sack the EA and start again.

Novice_investor101

I was a first time buyer of a 1895 Victorian terrace where the homebuyers survey came up with damp & possible dry/rot in the cellar, room above & in the main bedroom. It suggested the cellar in particular needed to be looked at further by a damp & timber specialist.

So I paid £300 for a damp, timber & roof surveyor to look at the house. He confirmed the cellar was full of wet rot & whole floor above needed replacing, no damp found in the bedroom (was condensation) & the roof was on its way out.

I did end up knocking £7k off the original offer based on the estimates from that survey for a new roof & completely new flooring above the cellar.

The house still has patches of "damp" on the front & back walls - but thats how the house is. It gets wet when it rains & dries when it's sunny. Nothing really to see there, tbh.