Non-standard construction

Cakeguts

m0bov wrote: »

There is no nightmare, have you actually ever purchased an NSC?

There are some round the corner from where I lived as a child that can only be bought for cash. No one can get a mortgage on them. It depends on the type of NSC. Some you cannot get a mortgage on. Some you can if they have been repaired well enough.

LMCLMC

Mine is Airey if that makes a difference? Is this the worst kind? I do think every house is different though and you can't believe all the horror stories and personally wouldn't generalise. After all, it's been standing for 75 years.

Would it make a difference if we bought the super-duper expensive survey do you think? Also, would the buildings insurance cover any major repairs that needed doing?

edgex

Cakeguts wrote: »

Nothing really to do with the council house for being a council house and everything to do with the NSC because the council on building it was building it to rent to someone and it was never expected that it would ever be sold but owned by the council for ever as a rental so they could use non standard construction that would never be suitable for a mortgage. It is since Right to Buy that these problems have started. In reality you are not going to get a mortgage on a house like this because the banks won't view it as a reasonable risk.



I expect that in an ideal world the council should buy it back.

It wasn't just councils that built with these systems, the police & fire services etc built staff housing using the systems, & those were sold off before 'right to buy', are still around & are in good condition.


LMCLMC
you really need to find out the specific type of NSC it is, so find a local surveyor & ask them.

edgex

LMCLMC wrote: »

all we know is pre-fabricated reinforced concrete. don't fully understand it all to be honest

LMCLMC wrote: »

The whole estate is brick on the outside so yes, very difficult to tell. we didn't have a single clue

LMCLMC wrote: »

That is very nice - ours is all brick so you would't know

LMCLMC wrote: »

Mine is Airey if that makes a difference? Is this the worst kind? I do think every house is different though and you can't believe all the horror stories and personally wouldn't generalise. After all, it's been standing for 75 years.

Would it make a difference if we bought the super-duper expensive survey do you think? Also, would the buildings insurance cover any major repairs that needed doing?

So it was built as an Airey, but has been repaired in brick at some point.
You need to find the details on that repair, as it completely changes the structure.


https://www.bisfhouse.com/airey-house/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Airey_house

LMCLMC

thank you edgex, will take a look. With not fully understanding the NSC, didn't know that Airey was one of the categories if you know what I mean. I thought the NSC's were all Airey's

LMCLMC

Ok, not to sound thick, but is that forums you've linked me to, or something I can pay for to give me details? I am not willing to post my address on a public forum

spadoosh

Cakeguts wrote: »

There are some round the corner from where I lived as a child that can only be bought for cash. No one can get a mortgage on them. It depends on the type of NSC. Some you cannot get a mortgage on. Some you can if they have been repaired well enough.

Its not a case of them having to have been repaired to be able to get a mortgage on.

If you built a new build timber frame house that met all the relevant building standards, you wouldnt need to repair it, it would be a NSC and you would be able to get a mortgage on it from some lenders.

Same applies to Cob houses.

Look at the huf haus website and tell me theyre houses that need repair work or are structurally unsound. Lenders will mortgage those properties.


NSC is literally 'non standard construction'. It doesnt relate at all to the structual integrity of the building, it is merely stating that it wasnt bult using conventional materials, those being brick/stone walls and slate/tiled roofs. Theres thousands upong thousands of these building up and down the country that are all structurally sound. With borrowing being secured against them. Most warehouses are NSC, most retail stores are NSC, mcdonalds, tudor houses, castles, barns, service stations etc all of which most you cant knock the structural integrity of.

Some lenders will only lend on standard construction properties thats there prerogative. There are plenty of companies that will lend on NSC properties providing they can be reassured that it is likely to be structurally sound. Some methods of NSC are considered to not be structurally sound at all so borrowing against these properties (in conventional ways) is near impossible.

LMCLMC

ok sorry guys, this is where my knowledge is zero. Please could someone explain what BISF means? Having looked on the map my village has zero of these houses

edgex

LMCLMC wrote: »

ok sorry guys, this is where my knowledge is zero. Please could someone explain what BISF means? Having looked on the map my village has zero of these houses

BISF is irrelevant to this, it's just a good website for examples of NSC

& as spadoosh has said, NSC is not one type of construction, it's anything that was/is different to the standard (at the time) external brick-cavity-inner brick/block.


What you need to find out, as its an Airey that has been repaired, is what that repair was.
Did the current owner have it done? If so, where are the records/paperwork?
If not them, who did it? (was it the local authority, or is it an ex-MoD house?)

LMCLMC

I see. At the moment the situation is, we have emailed the agent with a lower offer for the house and included the valuation report stating it is an Airey. The agent is going to speak to the owners and put forward our new offer, so at the same time will presumably find out if the owners have any repair certificates or what have you. They bought it in 2010 and know for a fact they have a mortgage on it.

Is there a chance that the valuer could be wrong and it's not NSC after all? Has anyone got experience of this?