Possible Subsidence: to buy or not to buy

GDB2222

Are there really no other houses you can buy? It seems to me that you are onto a loser here.

Even if your structural engineer says it is fine, you'll still have to disclose the adverse survey. So, insurance will be a big issue for you. And, will the engineer say it's fine? Surely, he's far more likely to protect his backside and say something inconclusive, perhaps more or less repeating what's in the survey? 

I think what's usually done is to monitor any cracks for months or years, to see how much movement is there. Clearly, that's fine for a homeowner, but it's not a timescale you can deal with as a buyer.  

Your solicitor is right. The correct way to deal with this is for the vendor to put in an insurance claim. You buy the house with the benefit of that claim. The insurers arrange the monitoring of the cracks over a long period, and if it needs underpinning they'll pay. However, the vendor won't play ball, so you can't do this.

In any case, a house with queries about subsidence will always be difficult to sell. So, I would just walk away, and not spend any more time or money on this. 

steadfast123

I have just sold a Victorian terrace with subsidence issues. I bought it as a naive FTB. The mortgage valuation survey said “evidence of long standing and non progressive movement” and I didn’t realise the significance at the time. After a few years cracks started opening in the corner of the front room. The issue was to do with the land the house was built on. I made an insurance claim- they investigated to rule out tree roots/drain problems then just cosmetically repaired. After another 4/5 years the cracks started coming back. I was paying £65 a month in buildings/contents insurance a month and just sold for 20% less then market value. Getting rid of the property was a relief. My advice would be to find something else.

Annemos

If you don't mind me asking, Steadfast123, was that property in London/South East or in the North/Midlands? 

steadfast123

Yorkshire 

ANGLICANPAT

We helped our daughter buy a top floor flat in London . We had a structural surveyor in and he found no problems.  Four months later there was subsidence . (Point being they cant always tell)   To cut a story short , the insurance company subcontracted  to a useless   agency to investigate and arrange repairs (common apparently)  . The significant thing  here, is that with  general incompetance ,  pit digging, monitoring and repairs with  huge time lapses between them , the case  took altogether  2 years .It was a real nightmare .  Daughter had only planned to say there  a  couple of  years  but was trapped for several more as  its very hard to sell a property that has newly been involved with  subsidence. Even when she did sell, she had to drop the price a lot, and was put through hoops by  three buyers  ( first two pulling out) .  I wouldnt knowingly touch a suspect property with a barge pole