House Purchase - Subsidence and walk away or just settling and continue?

Fishy003

We really like the look of a house but its in a state of disrepair. At first it looked just cosmetic but upon examining the wall we noticed a few areas with hairline cracks, they could of been there years or just appeared recently.

What would be the best course of action? The seller is asking top price for the house really.

Do these pics look bad? I wouldnt know where to start when it comes to drains and foundations. What kind of money are we talking worse case and best case to put it right?

Massively appreciate any help.

Rear of house kitchen window



Front drain on corner, looks like its dropped atleast an inch.


Front corner of house


Under Front Window which is just left of the drain in the above picture

FreeBear

The crack above the window is minor and probably due to thermal expansion/contraction. I wouldn't be unduly concerned, but...

The crack at the base of the wall could be an indication of something more serious. That is a relatively large crack that goes through at least two bricks. There may well be an issue with the drain, which suggests some subsidence.

I wouldn't be happy to put in an offer without a structural engineer's report, and one that has done some exploratory digging.

Rosa_Damascena

FreeBear said:

The crack above the window is minor and probably due to thermal expansion/contraction. I wouldn't be unduly concerned, but...

The crack at the base of the wall could be an indication of something more serious. That is a relatively large crack that goes through at least two bricks. There may well be an issue with the drain, which suggests some subsidence.

I wouldn't be happy to put in an offer without a structural engineer's report, and one that has done some exploratory digging.

Much depends on your attitude to risk. If you're nervous of it, don't shell out for a survey at your own expense. Just walk away.

FreeBear

Rosa_Damascena said:

FreeBear said:

The crack above the window is minor and probably due to thermal expansion/contraction. I wouldn't be unduly concerned, but...

The crack at the base of the wall could be an indication of something more serious. That is a relatively large crack that goes through at least two bricks. There may well be an issue with the drain, which suggests some subsidence.

I wouldn't be happy to put in an offer without a structural engineer's report, and one that has done some exploratory digging.

Much depends on your attitude to risk. If you're nervous of it, don't shell out for a survey at your own expense. Just walk away.

Also how much spare cash there is in the kitty to do some potentially expensive repairs. If the price is already at the top end with little prospect of a significant reduction, then I'd agree, walk away.

Fishy003

Any idea what those orange bars are btw on the corner below the satellite? I might just be looking for something thats not there but on a picture from 2016 you can see those orange bars exactly where the cracks are?

stuart45

The picture isn't clear enough to see any detail. Maybe an outside tap.
The crack over the window could be due to having a timber frame replaced with plastic and no lintel installed. The brickwork does look like it's dropped slightly.

EssexExile

You need a structural survey, the surveyor may recommend more investigation. 

greyteam1959

Walk away & leave what could be an expensive problem to somebody else.

Rosa_Damascena

Give up, you'll find something that was mean to be in time.

twopenny

If it is subsidence you have an expensive and intrusive job youll need to tackle before making the house your own and relaxing in it. You also need to solve whats causing it.
Then there's the impact on your house insurance.
If you have the money and this is your hearts desire be thorough with the investigation and know you'll be there for years to make it worth it.
Had a similar problem with a place i wanted. 

EssexExile

greyteam1959 said:

Walk away & leave what could be an expensive problem to somebody else.

Rosa_Damascena said:

Give up, you'll find something that was mean to be in time.

If you are going to wait for the perfect house, it'll be a long wait, someone will beat you too it and you won't be able to afford it.

This house I've been living in the last 20 years had similar cracks, it's still fine. Find out what's wrong first before you decide what to do.