'Big' public sewer under garden - will it affect house value / future sales?

joanofarcadia

My husband and I are first-time buyers working towards exchanging contracts on a house at the moment. We were initially very excited about the place we offered on - which is a small bungalow with a big garden, close to the beach and sea. We had plans to build a summer house in the garden like the neighbours have done. However, the searches have come back and there is one major (450 mm) public sewer / drain running through the garden, and one minor one (225 mm) - with 4 different 'inspection chambers' dotted all over the garden. We did some quick calculations, and given that one isn't allowed to build on / within 3 metres of a public sewer, that effectively means that around 45% of our garden can't be built on. The sellers had not informed us of this prior. 

This in some ways scuppers our plans to build a summer house: though it still might be possible on the remaining 55% of the garden, we'll have to excavate quite a lot as a result (because of the topography). But more importantly, we're worried about whether this might affect the house's value. We already offered pretty much at asking price, and £25,000 higher than what the house was valued at by an independent surveyor, thanks to some 'games' the agent played with us. But now we're worried about what this public sewer might mean for the house's value, and whether we are significantly overpaying for it given a part of the garden is 'unbuildable'. 

Does anyone have experience with buying / selling houses where there is a major sewer running under the plot? Does it typically turn off buyers or make people nervous (like its making us nervous)? Does it dampen house value?

ProDave

How close to the actual house?  Close enough to stop anyone building a normal extension?

It must reduce it's value a bit if potential to extend is restricted, but I would not like to guess how much by.

AdrianC

When you say "summerhouse", do you mean a wooden shed? What sort of base are you envisaging for it?

If it's the kind of thing that wouldn't need PP, then I wouldn't worry about it at all. The chances of the sewers needing access beyond what's accessible via the hatches (obvs don't cover those... but you saw those when you viewed, right?) is all but zero.

davidmcn

joanofarcadia said:

£25,000 higher than what the house was valued at by an independent surveyor

Your surveyor? If so, ask them whether they'd revise the value in light of the new information. I expect it will reduce it slightly, but I would have thought only a minority of buyers are going to have "ability to build on that bit of the garden" as a must-have.

joanofarcadia

Thanks for the quick follow-up Dave! The nearest manhole is not too close to the house, say about 10-12 metres. So a normal extension is definitely possible. It's only really the half of the garden that lends itself best to a summer house (i.e. with the easiest topography and better view) is unbuildable because its in the sewer area. 

joanofarcadia

AdrianC said:

When you say "summerhouse", do you mean a wooden shed? What sort of base are you envisaging for it?

If it's the kind of thing that wouldn't need PP, then I wouldn't worry about it at all. The chances of the sewers needing access beyond what's accessible via the hatches (obvs don't cover those... but you saw those when you viewed, right?) is all but zero.

Thanks Adrian. We're imagining more like a writer's cabin, with basic electricity and heating, between 25 and 35 sq. m, set about 20 meters or more from the house. It would require a relatively light foundation I suspect. And if we build to that size and with only 1 story, it seems it counts as a 'permitted development' that may not need planning permission, but could still need us to notify the local authority...? 

joanofarcadia

davidmcn said:

joanofarcadia said:

£25,000 higher than what the house was valued at by an independent surveyor

Your surveyor? If so, ask them whether they'd revise the value in light of the new information. I expect it will reduce it slightly, but I would have thought only a minority of buyers are going to have "ability to build on that bit of the garden" as a must-have.

Fair point David - I can't imagine someone would desperately need to build on that bit of the garden (unless they were planning a summer house like we are!).
In terms of valuation, yes that £25K was the difference in value the surveyor we hired highlighted as part of his homebuyer's report. We're thinking that this lower valuation, combined with the information on the sewer, may warrant a re-negotiation. But at the same time, the seller's agent did make us verbally 'commit' not to re-open the price negotiation when they accepted our offer, so not sure... 

davidmcn

joanofarcadia said:

davidmcn said:

joanofarcadia said:

£25,000 higher than what the house was valued at by an independent surveyor

Your surveyor? If so, ask them whether they'd revise the value in light of the new information. I expect it will reduce it slightly, but I would have thought only a minority of buyers are going to have "ability to build on that bit of the garden" as a must-have.

Fair point David - I can't imagine someone would desperately need to build on that bit of the garden (unless they were planning a summer house like we are!).
In terms of valuation, yes that £25K was the difference in value the surveyor we hired highlighted as part of his homebuyer's report. We're thinking that this lower valuation, combined with the information on the sewer, may warrant a re-negotiation. But at the same time, the seller's agent did make us verbally 'commit' not to re-open the price negotiation when they accepted our offer, so not sure... 

I think the wayleave is a significant enough surprise to justify reopening discussions about the price.

lincroft1710

25 sq m is quite a sizeable outbuilding, 35 sq m is a good size static caravan

Falafels

There's a public sewer in my back garden. It used to be a private sewer until they were all taken over by the water companies in 2011. These were the queries I received from the purchaser's solicitor:

1. Has the public sewer been built over and if so, please provide us with a copy of the build over agreement.

2. Have you ever given access to the Water Authority for inspection, repair or maintenance of the sewer

3. Please confirm whether the public sewer has ever been flooded.

4. Has the public sewer been diverted during your ownership.

5. Please confirm whether any rights have been exercised under the transfer dated 14/12/2005 and is there an active management company at the property.

...and that was it. I answered the questions, and the sale continued to progress. Not a problem. No renegotiation on price necessary.

joanofarcadia

Falafels said:

There's a public sewer in my back garden. It used to be a private sewer until they were all taken over by the water companies in 2011. These were the queries I received from the purchaser's solicitor:

1. Has the public sewer been built over and if so, please provide us with a copy of the build over agreement.

2. Have you ever given access to the Water Authority for inspection, repair or maintenance of the sewer

3. Please confirm whether the public sewer has ever been flooded.

4. Has the public sewer been diverted during your ownership.

5. Please confirm whether any rights have been exercised under the transfer dated 14/12/2005 and is there an active management company at the property.

...and that was it. I answered the questions, and the sale continued to progress. Not a problem. No renegotiation on price necessary.

Very helpful questions, thank you! We will repurpose 2, 3 and 4. Though our potential plot unfortunately has not just a private sewer gone public, it also has one the major sewers serving the town running under it.