Leak from the roof - is it common for new builds?

okigen

Many thanks! Yes that was what I was thinking. Also, given the poor quality of the roof in a new-ish building, I'm also concerned about the quality of the whole development.

Bottom line I will bow out.

GDB2222 said:

One issue with a block of flats is that the surveyor may well not even have access to the roof. If it’s a flat roof he may not be able to see the roof covering at all.

 And even if he can see it and diagnose the problem, it’s not the flat owner's roof, so he can’t just repair it. It’s up to the block management to repair the roof. If it were simple, you would expect that the flat seller would have got them to repair it, and he’d have repainted the ceiling before marketing the flat. So, there’s a good chance that you would be buying a flat with a long term leak, that nobody is interested in fixing. 

Hasbeen

okigen said:

Hello, a top-floor flat I viewed recently has a large water mark on the ceiling. I'm still waiting for the agent/owner to confirm, but it looks a lot like a water leak from the roof (probably happened when it rained lately).

The building was built 11 years ago and I think the roof is either flat or just slightly pitched.

Is it common for buildings of 11 years old to have this problem, or should I take this as a red flag? The flat looks perfect otherwise.

Many thanks!

It is not a new Build??

Properties with roof problems do leak when it rains. It does not go away.

It is a top floor flat that would be expensive to access and repair.

It is a Red Flag.

Look elsewhere. 

AlexMac

okigen said:

Many thanks! Yes that was what I was thinking.... Bottom line I will bow out.

Thanks to the OP for wrapping this up with a report on what you decided rather than leaving us to wonder what you did! AlexMac