Buyer’s survey happening today

skm1981

verytired11 said:

skm1981 said:

I had this and it was such a stressful time.  We had cracks running down the side of our house and I was so paranoid that it was going to be flagged as potential subsidence.  Then after he went, it's another waiting game while you hope you hear nothing back from the buyers.  Ours did raise potential subsidence.  Our buyer then wanted a structural engineer to come round.  More waiting.  Structural engineer came.  More waiting.  He said the dreaded subsidence word, but that it was historic and not ongoing.  Then my buyers wanted a drain survey.  That found we had a collapsed drain, but luckily we had insurance to cover the cost of that getting fixed, but we made it to completion.  I've never been so stressed in my life!  Great diet though, I lost a stone, so every cloud I guess!

Oh my goodness, that does sound stressful.  I am also worried about collapsed drains.  Did you have any warning signs of a collapsed drain prior to getting the drain survey?  Thank goodness you made it to completion.  Your buyer must have been patient and have really wanted the house.

I think I had the best buyers ever, and they were first-time buyers as well.  My friend is convinced they must know something about the house that I don't, that maybe there's some buried treasure in there for them to have stuck with us all the way through and not even ask for a price reduction haha.  

Yes, we did have a warning sign.  The ground was starting to dip just in front of the drain.  I'm so glad we had insurance.  We've been paying that insurance for 15 years and never used it, it finally came in handy!

ss2020jd

skm1981 said:

verytired11 said:

skm1981 said:

I had this and it was such a stressful time.  We had cracks running down the side of our house and I was so paranoid that it was going to be flagged as potential subsidence.  Then after he went, it's another waiting game while you hope you hear nothing back from the buyers.  Ours did raise potential subsidence.  Our buyer then wanted a structural engineer to come round.  More waiting.  Structural engineer came.  More waiting.  He said the dreaded subsidence word, but that it was historic and not ongoing.  Then my buyers wanted a drain survey.  That found we had a collapsed drain, but luckily we had insurance to cover the cost of that getting fixed, but we made it to completion.  I've never been so stressed in my life!  Great diet though, I lost a stone, so every cloud I guess!

Oh my goodness, that does sound stressful.  I am also worried about collapsed drains.  Did you have any warning signs of a collapsed drain prior to getting the drain survey?  Thank goodness you made it to completion.  Your buyer must have been patient and have really wanted the house.

I think I had the best buyers ever, and they were first-time buyers as well.  My friend is convinced they must know something about the house that I don't, that maybe there's some buried treasure in there for them to have stuck with us all the way through and not even ask for a price reduction haha.  

Yes, we did have a warning sign.  The ground was starting to dip just in front of the drain.  I'm so glad we had insurance.  We've been paying that insurance for 15 years and never used it, it finally came in handy!

They sound like dream buyers!  Haha that or they just really loved the house. It’s good to know that things can be remedied. And that buildings insurance does sometimes come in handy. 

stressedout45

The very best of luck.
Honestly  this whole process is just horrible isn’t it!? 

Someone in this thread has mentioned that often it is the buyers reaction to the survey which causes the issue… I would absolutely agree there.  When we bought our current house, which was built in the 1920s, and got the survey report back, we were more than a bit shocked and concerned.   It is the oldest house we have ever bought and so we did not really know what to expect.  Our financial advisor at the time took a look at the report for us and told us that in fact, considering the age of the house, many of the issues raised were in fact entirely normal.  

Come to think of it, many of the issues mentioned are quite small things, for example there was something about one of the internal doors not fitting the frame properly - this is something which has never been an issue to us at all and we’ve not had it replaced.  

Anyway-fingers crossed that it all goes smoothly for you.  

verytired11

Yes, we did have a warning sign.  The ground was starting to dip just in front of the drain.  I'm so glad we had insurance.  We've been paying that insurance for 15 years and never used it, it finally came in handy!

That's my next worry - I recently changed insurers after being with the same ones for many years.  What if they refuse to pay out?!  The way my mind spins out of control is that I go from buyer's survey to financial destitution in a matter of seconds....  I am only at the start of the process but I honestly don't think that I can move house ever again.

verytired11

stressedout45 said:

The very best of luck.
Honestly  this whole process is just horrible isn’t it!? 

Someone in this thread has mentioned that often it is the buyers reaction to the survey which causes the issue… I would absolutely agree there.  When we bought our current house, which was built in the 1920s, and got the survey report back, we were more than a bit shocked and concerned.   It is the oldest house we have ever bought and so we did not really know what to expect.  Our financial advisor at the time took a look at the report for us and told us that in fact, considering the age of the house, many of the issues raised were in fact entirely normal.  

Come to think of it, many of the issues mentioned are quite small things, for example there was something about one of the internal doors not fitting the frame properly - this is something which has never been an issue to us at all and we’ve not had it replaced.  

Anyway-fingers crossed that it all goes smoothly for you.  

One of the things my buyer's surveyor was looking at closely was a door that doesn't fit the frame properly.  It has been like that for 20 years since we moved in and hasn't got any worse so is probably due to historic subsidence.  But of course the surveyor will no doubt pick it up as a worrying sign.

ss2020jd

stressedout45 said:

The very best of luck.
Honestly  this whole process is just horrible isn’t it!? 

Someone in this thread has mentioned that often it is the buyers reaction to the survey which causes the issue… I would absolutely agree there.  When we bought our current house, which was built in the 1920s, and got the survey report back, we were more than a bit shocked and concerned.   It is the oldest house we have ever bought and so we did not really know what to expect.  Our financial advisor at the time took a look at the report for us and told us that in fact, considering the age of the house, many of the issues raised were in fact entirely normal.  

Come to think of it, many of the issues mentioned are quite small things, for example there was something about one of the internal doors not fitting the frame properly - this is something which has never been an issue to us at all and we’ve not had it replaced.  

Anyway-fingers crossed that it all goes smoothly for you.  

Thank you so much. It really is! It sounds so much more straightforward in Scotland where you get the survey yourself so there are no nasty surprises (if I understand that correctly). 

Yes, that’s very true about the buyer’s reaction, and I’m keeping all crossed that as the buyers are selling their own older property they would be more used to things that may crop up.  As a lot of posters on here say when people post about survey results, that a lot of it is to be expected in properties of a certain age and surveyors have to cover themselves. It’s still stressful waiting and wondering though! 

ss2020jd

I know that feeling @verytired11. But as long as the insurance is there before any problems are noted I’m sure it will be fine. If it hasn’t changed for that long I’m sure they will note it as historic. Keeping all crossed for you too! 

Skiddaw1

OP, our buyers had a full structural survey carried out on our (Victorian) house when we sold. I was sure it was all going to go pear-shaped but it was fine. Try not to worry too much.

youth_leader

I had a period property and wondered if I could afford to continue living there, so I commissioned my own full structural survey before going on the market. Although it proved I would have to sell, I wasted my money having it done,  the buyer's survey seemed to be far worse, and my EA did not give my own survey any credence. 

 I would recommend asking to see survey extracts if the buyer asks to negotiate for works.

ss2020jd

Thank you @Skiddaw1. That would have been even more nerve-wracking! Glad yours was all okay. Gives me hope. I will try!