What is the risk of buying house with Natural ground subsidence - Moderate - high level?

Poniato

Hey!

I'm in the process to buy a house. All the searches have been just made. The report shows that Natural ground subsidence is on Moderate-high level. Please, see on the attached image below. Is that something which I should consider? Should I make structural searches (which cost £800). Should I directly try to get a lower price based on these basic searches? Or maybe I should resign from buying this house?



Thanks,
Poniat

Davesnave

You are reading too much into this search, which only gives part of the picture, and even then isn't clear if the risk is moderate or high.

As it's a built-up area just outside Leeds, the first observation I'd make is that the underlying ground stability hasn't put off thousands of people building and living there. Ground instability would also be true of the whole London Basin, where millions live, all of it built on clay sub-soil subject to shrinkage and expansion.

Bearing the above in mind, you aren't going to get a lower price based on a broad-scope map indicating risk. Risk is only part of the story.

The other half of the picture is the house itself, about which you've told us nothing at all. Some houses are built correctly to suit their ground conditions and other aren't, but the more recent the property the more likely it is to have adequate foundations for the location.

You'd find out whether a house has subsidence with a RICS Buildings Survey, which would flag up any important issues. A structural engineer would then need to investigate any suspected subsidence problems, or you'd decide at that stage to walk away. However, most houses don't need that level of checking, or any remediation.

AdrianC

Just think about how many houses are in the area shown on that map, and how many of them have been there for decades - some for centuries.

How many of them have had structural problems in that time?

davidmcn

Also, are you sure that's what the search shows, as the map appears to be centred on an area of negligible risk?

Exodi

davidmcn wrote: »

Also, are you sure that's what the search shows, as the map appears to be centred on an area of negligible risk?

^ This. The house isn't even in an area that is marked 'moderate - high risk'?

I think searches should always be taken with a grain of salt; if I took the advice of my survey/searches, I'd need to spend more than the value of the house on specialist surveys.

Davesnave

Exodi wrote: »

^ This. The house isn't even in an area that is marked 'moderate - high risk'?

It says 'site outline,' but would it not be based on postcode, rather than the house itself?

AdrianC

Davesnave wrote: »

It says 'site outline,' but would it not be based on postcode, rather than the house itself?

In an urban area like that, the postcode is not going to be a wide area. A handful of houses - 15 on average.

Davesnave

AdrianC wrote: »

In an urban area like that, the postcode is not going to be a wide area. A handful of houses - 15 on average.

Yes, I know, but it's not far to a red area on the map either.


Maybe I'm being too generous, but I'm starting from the proposition that the OP can read the map they posted!