Single Skin wall, bad purchase?

mrsmortgage

We're trying to buy a house but we've found that the kitchen wall (where the extension is) is single skinned. Three out of 4 mortgage brokers have said they're a pain to get a mortgage depending on the wall in question and the surveyor. But nobody can give me a definite answer. Any advice?

princeofpounds

My understanding is that whilst it can restrict your options, houses with single-skin extensions are usually mortgageable by a range of lenders. Not that I would know better than three mortgage brokers necessarily.


They can be damn cold and damp though...

Retired_Mortgage_Adviser

There are non-standard construction lenders who will consider offering on properties with a single brick extension. However, it’s not black and white, it also depends on property-specific factors, as well as the borrower's individual circumstances.

As you have found out, the number of approachable lenders will be far fewer, but a decent whole-of-market broker might be able to find a deal for you.

Unfortunately, there is no definitive answer.

Cakeguts

Find another house without this type of wall anywhere in the construction.

davidmcn

Or if you can find a way of buying it, you'd then presumably be able to improve the offending wall and remove the issue for future remortgages/sales?

mrsmortgage

We dont know enough about this type of house to know if it's fixable or not. We wouldn't keep this house for very long either in the grand scheme of things. Would move/sell within 8 years which is one of the reasons why a broker in particular advised against it. As we could lose our deposit or be a pain to sell.

FreeBear

mrsmortgage wrote: »

We dont know enough about this type of house to know if it's fixable or not.

Everything is "fixable", just depends on how far you want to go. For a single skin extension, fitting studwork to the internal wall and filling the space with 100mm or so of Celotex/Kingspan insulation would do wonders for the space. Digging out the floor and lay a well insulated slab, and rip down/replace the ceiling (after insulating) would complete the work. Depending on how much you do yourself, £5-10K. When setting out the studwork, just be mindful of where wall cabinets are going to be hung.

Doing the work and getting building control sign off will make the property much more appealing to future buyers and make it easier for them to get a mortgage - Would also add a few pounds in value.

mrsmortgage

FreeBear wrote: »

Everything is "fixable", just depends on how far you want to go. For a single skin extension, fitting studwork to the internal wall and filling the space with 100mm or so of Celotex/Kingspan insulation would do wonders for the space. Digging out the floor and lay a well insulated slab, and rip down/replace the ceiling (after insulating) would complete the work. Depending on how much you do yourself, £5-10K. When setting out the studwork, just be mindful of where wall cabinets are going to be hung.

Doing the work and getting building control sign off will make the property much more appealing to future buyers and make it easier for them to get a mortgage - Would also add a few pounds in value.

Would that increase the value of the house or only make it more more mortgageable for future buyers? £10k would eat half our deposit, so when we sell it maybe we wouldn't see it back.

FreeBear

mrsmortgage wrote: »

Would that increase the value of the house or only make it more more mortgageable for future buyers? £10k would eat half our deposit, so when we sell it maybe we wouldn't see it back.

The value of any property is academic until you come to sell. At that point, you get back both your deposit and any increase in real world value. After the standing balance is settled on the mortgage, you should have a net profit that can be used as a deposit on the next home. Historically, house prices have always increased with just a couple of dips over the last 30 years or so.

mrsmortgage

FreeBear wrote: »

The value of any property is academic until you come to sell. At that point, you get back both your deposit and any increase in real world value. After the standing balance is settled on the mortgage, you should have a net profit that can be used as a deposit on the next home. Historically, house prices have always increased with just a couple of dips over the last 30 years or so.

But let's say the house is worth £200k, deposit is £20k. In 5 years I sell it for £210k and fix the wall for £10k (so it's easier for the buyer to get a mortgage)

In this scenario the "profit" would be taken by fixing that wall so it would be a bad investment.

foxy-stoat

I would question whether it had the building regulation approval for a single skin extension that was built as a kitchen. Look for another property.