Significant vertical cracking

Cakeguts

I just can't understand what is so attactive about this particular house that I wouldn't touch with someone else's bargepole because I wouldn't know what could happen to that wall in the future especially since the wall is already being monitored for further movement.



I suspect that it was cheap for the area because the vendor knew it would be difficult to sell because of this problem so it looks as if it is a bargain but of course it could end up costing much more in terms of repairs than it will ever be worth.


The vendor must have been really pleased when they go an offer from a first time buyer. They would assume that the buyers wouldn't realise that they were buying a money pit. They would probably only think about how much house they were getting for their initial purchase price and not think about how much more it would cost to repair that wall.


That £400 survey could end up saving £1000s in repair bills for that wall.

Hillwalker11

The vendors should have an extensive surveyor's report. Our cracks were monitored and over a 2 year period we had letters every 6 weeks showing the figures on how much movement had occurred. If the vendors are saying it has been like it for 3 or 4 years this doesn't ring true. Subsidence claims are dealt with very differently now to when we had ours investigated.It would be very unusual to monitor for 3 to 4 years.It just doesn't happen on that timescale.I think you would also find the house would be if not uninsureable your premiums would be very high. Our insurers paid for everything, all the monitoring, bore holes, soil sample analysis and eventually underpinning. Over 20 years ago the final bill was in excess of £30,000.
As a first time buyer this is not the house for you.

kirtay

Thank you all of you for your valuable replies.

I must say, we have missed the cracks during the viewing. Otherwise this is good property and also in the area where we want to buy.

There are hardly any other good property which fits the taste and budget. But I believe its better to wait longer to get suitable one.

quantumlobster

kirtay wrote: »

Thank you all of you for your valuable replies.

I must say, we have missed the cracks during the viewing. Otherwise this is good property and also in the area where we want to buy.

There are hardly any other good property which fits the taste and budget. But I believe its better to wait longer to get suitable one.

Exactly. You've dodged a potentially very expensive bullet here.

AndyTails

Those crack monitoring devices look very old, faded plastic etc. I would believe the vendor that they've been there for over 4 years, i.e. since before they bought the place.

The crack is not huge. If it had been growing for over 4 years, I'd expect it to be bigger. I'm relatively confident that there is no ongoing problem.

BUT I wouldn't buy it without a structural engineers report. The vendor not being able to give you one would worry me, but it's completely possible that they didn't keep good track of stuff they got when they bought the place.

There's nothing wrong with getting your own structural engineer to confirm that it's ok. But be warned that when you come to sell, you're going to get the same worries from your potential buyers. Maybe you should budget to rebuild the front wall to get rid of the crack... but that won't be cheap.

You can always try and renegotiate on the purchase price to take this rebuild into account. I wouldn't give much for your chances, especially if you think the house is already cheap, but it might work...

martindow

It looks as if there was another crack monitoring device below the windowsill level that has been removed - possibly to make it less obvious to potential buyers.



Have you asked the vendor for the report from whoever placed the devices on the wall?

kirtay

The price difference is around 25k cheaper and the vendor hasn't contacted me yet to discuss anything further since I demand for SE survey

Sibz

It also looks like a couple of the things have been removed or fell off.... Is there a final report from the structural engineer who done the work? - Surely if that came back as fine it would have been kept with the deeds to reassure future potential buyers?

Like others have posted - only you know what you think the property is worth and how much risk you are willing to take - bearing in mind it does look likely you'll have a fair job on your hands attending to that and whatever it may lead to (or cost to deal with). If you're still unsure then a reputable SE should be able to give you a more accurate idea of the situation

Hillwalker11

If a structural engineer had been monitoring, they would not have left cracks like that.There would have been at the least remedial repairs to the wall.There should also be a final report from the surveyor signing off the work. The movement of the cracks are minimal and not obvious to the naked eye, they would not necessarily look as if they are getting bigger but there would be movement, In the summer they get larger and then shrink over the winter. The significance of your photos show zig zag cracking in more than one place which is worrying.
It could cost the insurers a lot more than £25000 in repairs depending on the final outcome.Also it goes on for ever and is stressful for the house owner. Not what you want for your first home.

kirtay

To be honest, I can wait for a while to have a property which gives me peace inside rather than going for little cheap and worry about the rest of the time.

It might not be ongoing but considering possible heavy expenses, I could better off waiting little longer.