Steel concrete frame / concrete clad house

Peppe13

Hi!
Me and my partner are first time buyers. We’ve had an offer accepted on a house we love but we found out (by a struck of luck) that it’s a non traditional construction house.

The vendor and the estate agents have not been really helpful so far. They only told us that the house is a Steel concrete panel frame / concrete clad house and that it has cavity walls.

We really do not know how to proceed. Has anyone come across this type of property? 

We’ve read that steel frame houses can have lots of structural problems in the long term and there are also problems with the house insurance.

Any help / information would be extremely valuable!
Thanks!

Cakeguts

Is it an ex local authority property?   Some non standard construction properties are very difficult to get a mortgage for.  Did it appear to be good value for money?  Was it bigger than you thought you could afford or cheaper than other houses of the same size?

Peppe13

They appear to not know if it is an ex local authority property.
The seller has a mortgage on it with Leeds building society so it should be a mortgageable property.
The value was similar or higher than other properties in the area. 

K_S

@peppe13 It isn't clear from your description as to what exact construction type it is and whether it has been 'repaired' to an acceptable standard in the past. Leeds will not normally lend on steel-frame houses without a mainstream outer leaf (brick/block/stone/etc) and a structural engineers report.

If they do actually have a Leeds mortgage taken out in the past few years, it is unlikely that the property will have any significant defects. Spending £3 on the title register on the land registry will confirm whether the property is indeed mortgaged with Leeds or not.

I don't want to presume anything, but from my experience, typically vendors who have owned non-standard construction properties for a reasonable period of time know exactly what they own. If they aren't being upfront, it could be a red flag.

You should proceed cautiously before incurring any sunk costs on this property. Assuming you need a mortgage, as a starting point you need to figure out what the technical name for the construction type is before you or your broker can find a suitable lender who may consider.

FreeBear

K_S said: You should proceed cautiously before incurring any sunk costs on this property. Assuming you need a mortgage, as a starting point you need to figure out what the technical name for the construction type is before you or your broker can find a suitable lender who may consider.

A photo or two, perhaps with a rightmove link, and the collective knowledge here may be able to identify the name. Some of these non-standard properties are dead easy to identify, others need little research to come up with a name.

Not all non-standard construction methods are deemed inherently defective in the Housing Act 1985, which opens up the number of potential mortgage providers. If the house is one of the defective types, but has been repaired (and a certificate provided), a mainstream lender should be able to give you a mortgage. If it is defective and hasn't been repaired, run away now before spending any money on surveys.

An estate agent worth their salt (fees) should have sufficient local knowledge to answer simple questions like "is this ex-council" or "is this PRC/BSF/etc".

Peppe13

Thank you so much for your help.
Here are a few pictures of the property

caprikid1

Where is the house, often non standard construction can be quite regionalised so combine the two and and it may give up it's secrets in a google search.

lonibra

What KS and Freebear said. Structural surveys and engineer reports can be invasive (seller may not allow anyway) and cost a lot of money so you don't want to waste any time or money on this unless it's widely lent on.

Don't take the seller or the estate agent their word, make sure you verify.

https://www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/110478839#/?channel=RES_BUY

Chandler85

Not the same road but pretty close.

https://historicengland.org.uk/images-books/photos/item/JLP01/08/001063

Description

'Easiform' was a method of in situ pre-cast concrete construction which John Laing and Son Ltd developed from 1919 onwards.

A similar image was published in the July 1949 edition of Laing's monthly newsletter, Team Spirit. The image shows the 'Sturminster Road site' which was Bristol housing contract No.7, and the article talks about the unusual conditions at the site.

This image was catalogued as part of the Breaking New Ground Project in partnership with the John Laing Charitable Trust in 2019-20.

Peppe13

K_S said:

@peppe13 It isn't clear from your description as to what exact construction type it is and whether it has been 'repaired' to an acceptable standard in the past. Leeds will not normally lend on steel-frame houses without a mainstream outer leaf (brick/block/stone/etc) and a structural engineers report.

If they do actually have a Leeds mortgage taken out in the past few years, it is unlikely that the property will have any significant defects. Spending £3 on the title register on the land registry will confirm whether the property is indeed mortgaged with Leeds or not.

I don't want to presume anything, but from my experience, typically vendors who have owned non-standard construction properties for a reasonable period of time know exactly what they own. If they aren't being upfront, it could be a red flag.

You should proceed cautiously before incurring any sunk costs on this property. Assuming you need a mortgage, as a starting point you need to figure out what the technical name for the construction type is before you or your broker can find a suitable lender who may consider.

I got the title register. The house was last bought in 2017 and Leeds is the lender is Leeds building society.

The house was transferred from Bristol city council in 1988

K_S

Peppe13 said:

K_S said:

@peppe13 It isn't clear from your description as to what exact construction type it is and whether it has been 'repaired' to an acceptable standard in the past. Leeds will not normally lend on steel-frame houses without a mainstream outer leaf (brick/block/stone/etc) and a structural engineers report.

If they do actually have a Leeds mortgage taken out in the past few years, it is unlikely that the property will have any significant defects. Spending £3 on the title register on the land registry will confirm whether the property is indeed mortgaged with Leeds or not.

I don't want to presume anything, but from my experience, typically vendors who have owned non-standard construction properties for a reasonable period of time know exactly what they own. If they aren't being upfront, it could be a red flag.

You should proceed cautiously before incurring any sunk costs on this property. Assuming you need a mortgage, as a starting point you need to figure out what the technical name for the construction type is before you or your broker can find a suitable lender who may consider.

I got the title register. The house was last bought in 2017 and Leeds is the lender is Leeds building society.

The house was transferred from Bristol city council in 1988

@peppe13 In that case it is likely either a non-defective construction type or was repaired in the past and has the necessary certificates/report to make it mortgageable with mainstream lenders (though there might still be LTV limitations potentially).

From a quick look at that street it looks like there have been regular sales as well over the past 5 years, which is also a positive sign. Good luck, hope it works out!