Building survey shows £9.5k of urgent repairs required

[Deleted User]

ProDave wrote: »

Re the pond. We have a burn (stream for the southerners) running through our garden and the surveyor gave it a "repair category 2" I said well just what do you expect me to do? His reply was to erect a fence along both banks of the stream so nobody can get to it. What a load ob b******s

Hear, hear !

[Deleted User]

Catsacor wrote: »

Hear, hear !

Surveyors can really cause a lot of anguish, often the report scares the life out of purchasers which in turn can lead to chains/sales falling through
I understand they have to guard against litigation but really …..:undecided

jimbog

cherryduck wrote: »

Hi all,

Solicitor is pushing for us to send the deposit money over because the exchange of contracts is apparently imminent

It is only imminent if you are ready for it to be imminent. You're not, so it isn't 'imminent'. You decide if and when you are ready

Smodlet

I reiterate, take a builder with you to view it; ideally, take at least three on three separate occasions. If the vendor doesn't like it, you hold all the cards; you can just walk away.

No way on this earth would I pay anything like £500 for an electrical report, jeez. I have to wonder if this surveyor is hoping you ask him to recommend tradesmen and has factored in his kickbacks for doing so.

If you are able to post a picture of the electric board, some on here should be able to tell you if a full re-wire is likely to be necessary but the best way, again, is to ask those of your acquaintance to recommend a sparks so you can sweet talk him into accompanying you and your builder when you view. Do your parents/whoever not know an electrician who might do you a favour?

The last electrical report we commissioned cost us precisely nothing; our lovely guy would not accept even a fiver for his travelling costs as we had already had this house re-wired using his services. Building up relationships with tradesmen is one of the best things you will ever do, believe me.

babyblade41

As I buy older houses I don't bother with surveyors.. they state the most ridiculous things and I'm not sure where they get their pricing from and I'm in Oxfordshire

It's why on a viewing I prefer the agent rather than owner to show me round, I pretty much know what to look for and what to try ...I know because I've been a vendor many times

Possibly take a builder with you along with report and see what they say .. but on the report you posted I wouldn't be worried at all ..although damp is a !!!!!! until you find where it's coming from

G_M

Just to provide some balance to those who describe (as so often) the survey as 'a*se-covering', it depends on how you perceive the purpose of the report.

I bought a 19th C house and the survey was extensive, listing picky little things (flaking paintwork on window frames) and larger more critical things.

Yes, one purpose is to identify huge unforeseen costs which might require price renegotiation. but to be honest, I saw the report as an extremely helpful "to do" list.

I bought the house, then went through the report listing every job needed according to whether
a) it was a weekend DIY job or one needing a professional, and
b) needed doing asap, next summer, or sometime in the next few years


Yes, even the flaking paintwork was useful to have highlighted (I'd always had upvc windows previously),so come the summer I got out a ladder, some sandpaper/paint and crossed it off my "to do" list. "Thanks Mr Survey man for pointing it out to me!"

Davesnave

I agree the figures the surveyor quotes are high, but people would be more annoyed if they underestimated the costs.

Forget the pond and other irrelevancies and drill down into what needs to be done and in what order. Securing the roof is always fundamental. Electrics before most other stuff; it severely messes with decoration.

We don't know the OP and they may not yet realise their capabilities either. Perhaps some things, like removing the paint finish, could actually be done by the OP? I know when I wanted to re-render my property I wasn't going to pay a person £20/hr to knock the old stuff off; I bought a £50 SDS demolition drill from Screwfix and did it myself.

And it's all very well saying, "Take a trusted builder along," but not everyone knows a builder, especially one who can be trusted! One tends to know more builders after buying a house, but I agree they can be handy. You shouldn't expect them to come along for the ride and the promise of a job or two.


Finally, I don't have surveys either, because I'm related to builders and I have enough background too, but I know surveyors will say more than they write. If the OP rings the one whose report features here they will probably indicate if they think the house is worth the money or not.

Doozergirl

It's a thorough survey but I think the costs are inflated.

It isn't backside covering, it's doing as they've been asked and as G_M says, it is a to do list.

But those are very, very common items to come up in survey and the costs are overinflated. Two air-bricks do not cost £500. You could do it yourself for £20 and a couple of hours at a weekend.

The main issue is the chimney, but all of the work doesn't need to be priced out as individual jobs, inflating the cost. It's a day's work for someone. Scaffolding is the main expense.

If you're going to renegotiate, it's on the chimney and a new consumer unit.

anfieldred

G_M wrote: »

Ha ha! :rotfl: Totally contradicts my post above!



Any rational reason why you are suggesting imposing last minute delays to Exchange which will simply aggravate everyone?

"Totally contradicts" -you literally suggested walking away as an option as well.

GDB2222

Doozergirl wrote: »

It's a thorough survey but I think the costs are inflated.

It isn't backside covering, it's doing as they've been asked and as G_M says, it is a to do list.

But those are very, very common items to come up in survey and the costs are overinflated. Two air-bricks do not cost £500. You could do it yourself for £20 and a couple of hours at a weekend.

The main issue is the chimney, but all of the work doesn't need to be priced out as individual jobs, inflating the cost. It's a day's work for someone. Scaffolding is the main expense.

If you're going to renegotiate, it's on the chimney and a new consumer unit.

The OP needs to get a couple of quotations for the building work, plus negotiate a price reduction.