"Official" Thread for all of us waiting for a cladding report...

haras_nosirrah

The reality of the situation from the other side of the desk is that no lenders are lending on properties above 6 stories which have any kind of cladding unless MHCLG reports are done and can be provided.

Before any buyer wastes their money on a survey ask the vendor or estate agent if this report has already been done. If the answer is no it is not mortgagable at the moment and won't be until the situation changes and the lenders are less strict or these reports are provided.

Prior to july people were getting them through. Since July it won't happen. This has become very clear recently.

If people say to the housing associations and management companies that they aren't going to buy without the report they may pull their fingers out and actually get them sorted. It is pointless spending money on a survey until this is done.

If the block is under 6 stories or 18m (the lower of the two) you have better odds. I got a mortgage offer out last week for someone without needing the reports but on these cases I would go with a lender with a free valuation even if the rate is slightly higher as it will be down to surveyors discretion.

EC3D

I was told that the cladding was completed post-Grenfell and that was when the Local Authority Building Control (LABC) certified it, but that was late 2017, so it seems like the regulation changes more recently have caused all this trouble.

Am I right in thinking that it means the Building Owner needs a new report? Would that report be from the council? No one seems to know what to do and just pushes it on to the Building Owner, who clearly also isn't sure what he is meant to do. The LABC just said they can't write the statement even though they're listed as a professional body by the MHCLG.

asm89

Yeah a new survey/test on the cladding and report will be required unfortunately. The latest regulations came into force from February 2019. Survey will need to be done by a member of one of the bodies listed.

EC3D

I see. Who would even do the new report? The Local Council just said "Unfortunately the Council is not in a position to review the building in relation to MHCLG guidance." but I also read in another thread that many fire safety companies don't want to do reports and risk putting their name on statements due to PI Insurance! I even spoke to a Chartered Surveyor and they said it wasn't something they could do either.

Is there actually any way this situation can be resolved?

asm89

In another thread apparently H+H Fire based in E14 are conducting reports in London. The seller needs to pressure the management company on this, but can suggest them as an alternative to the council.

hi123

LP.online wrote: »

Hmm, that i disagree. I am a seller for my Shared ownership and I was also caught in the same situation having not known that the bank would require a cladding report and my HA did not have one when I wrote in to them to sell my Shared ownership back in July.

My estate Agent, solicitors etc ... none of them in the chain were known to this "new requirement" by the Bank and of course no one wants to take responsibility for it and the ultimate losers are the buyer and seller having to folk out the sunk cost from our own pockets.

I also have paid for the valuation of my flat as it is on Shared Ownership, therefore I cannot take a market price other than the price written down by HA's appointed valuation. The report cost me £300 and only valid for 3 months!

i think all cases are slightly different
in our case i am in receipt of a copy of email and letter about further fire testing requirement sent to all lease holders in platinum riverside greenwich in june 2019
we paid for searches etc in july,obviously vendor knew about the problem and didnt either willfully or ignorantly share with EA or us
that to me is trying to deceive
if our searches expire we will incur double cost ,avoidable in my view
shouldnt estate agents be making this clear to prospective buyers?

LP.online

So another one bites the dust .... today I had to painfully tell the buyer that the sale is off because the Housing Association/ builder does not have the cladding report that her lender (Santander Bank) is asking for 3 times and nothing was moving in the end.
This whole process from offer accepted to sale fell through took 12 weeks and cost me £1K+ sunk cost.
Like someone here has advised, do nothing now until the report is out before the buyer and seller can start some economic activity.

I'm super p**** with the situation and my life is on hold because of this ... and my estate agent left the scene quietly like a ninja (it's Connells by the way and an absolutely useless estate agency during my one and only experience with them ... never again...).

asm89

Sorry to hear that! Which Housing Association is it by the way?

mhuk01

Has anyone had any success remortgaging? Despite receiving a statement from a qualified professional (via the management company), it still doesn't satisfy the lender as it is not the exact wording they want. We have a valuation taking place on monday for a different mortgage lender, with Countrywide. Has anyone had success getting a valuation from them?

asm89

My valuation was with countrywide and they asked for the report. For a new purchase. But this could have been at the lenders insistence

Which lenders have these been? What was their issue with the statement?

This is such a headache ��. I genuinely think 5hat none of them want to actually lend right now.