Is it fair to ask for reduction on house price based on these found in building survey?

goldlemontree

Hi all, I've had an offer accepted on a property however the following issues have been noted that to me seem acceptable to ask for a reduction on as I couldn't check these while viewing, just wondering is it acceptable to ask for a reduction based on these and not knowing extent of issues without more specific surveys in all areas, and roughly how much of a reduction would be fair? I live in Birmingham, the house is a pre 1920s end of terrace, 3 bed. 


Rising damp
Signs of subsidence which will need investigating (stepped cracks which have been repointed, sticking doors)
No insulation in walls/floors or loft (I assumed they would have improved their energy efficiency a bit since they bought it but it seems to be the same)
Electrics need full rewire
Low water pressure, fairly old boiler might need updating here

EDIT: Another thing was that there is no building regs on a utility room attached to the kitchen, so this could be another headache in the future. The surveyor also said this had been poorly constructed, also showing signs of subsidence.


Thanks

sammyjammy

In a word based on what you've said no not really but you can ask anything you want.  What will you do if they say no?  How much are you wanting to reduce your offer by?

RelievedSheff

I wouldn't say that there is anything there that shouldn't have been fairly obvious when you walked around the property, so on that basis I would also say no there is no real basis for a reduction in the offer.

Slithery

goldlemontree said:

Rising damp

No, there isn't...

https://www.heritage-house.org/damp-and-condensation/the-fraud-of-rising-damp.html

K_S

@goldlemontree Of course, there are no hard and fast rules about these kind of things. The worst they can say is no.

princeofpounds

It is entirely a question of commercial negotiation. There is no right to wrong approach to this. The question is - are you happy with the price of the offer you just made, or not? And are they happy selling for a different price, or not?

If there is a convention, it would be that any material damage that is uncovered in a survey that would not have been evident on a casual inspection is valid grounds for renegotiation. But it's a convention that is probably ignored as often as it is accepted.

As to the specifics:

- No, you shouldn't expect to renegotiate based on a lack of insulation. And most properties don't have insulation in the walls or floors. If you want more in the loft (and you will) then get a man to lay some down, it's not expensive.

- Surveys almost always say that a rewire is needed, because the electrical codes change every year and almost no houses are up to code as a result. If the electrics work and are not actively dangerous then you shouldn't expect anything here.

- Rising damp... tricky one. There is a lot of controversy about the diagnosis of damp, especially if done with electronic meters (as they are not designed for anything except wood). Also rising damp is not that common and often misdiagnosed. Is the damp actually evident? Is it because the exterior ground level is over the DPC, or there is no DPC?

- Subsidence could be a big deal, and stepped cracks and distorted door frames are proper symptoms. I would investigate further if you are interested because this is often a deal-breaker. This is probably the main concern on the list. Have they ever had a structural engineer's report?

- Low water pressure - could be anything, may just need topping up. Get a plumber/gas technician in to take a look if you want.

RS2OOO

Personally, and this is only my non-professional opinion, I tend to worry more when insulation is fitted on older properties.

My belief is that cavity walls and floating floors are meant to breathe. There was some damp in the walls of my cavity wall insulated1920's property when I moved in. I knocked some bricks out to find the walls had been "filled" (half filled, if that) with polystyrene balls. I hoovered the whole lot out and did the same on the other walls when I replaced downstairs windows. Never had any signs of damp since.

The only thing on the list that would concern me is the "signs of subsidence". If that is literally all the survey says then I'd definitely have more questions to ask before committing to buying, but if its a few stepped cracks around say, where a soil pipe comes through the wall then I wouldn't be so worried.

bris

Usually a professional comes out to value the house before it goes up for sale and the condition is noted and a selling price is based on that. Signs of subsidense seems to be on all the reports as standard, it;s get out of jail free card for the valuer.

Can you compare the price to similar ones in the area? 

london21

You can ask, they might say no. 
Worth trying anyway.

warwick2001

I would organise a second viewing, and armed with the survey findings, go and look at the cracks, ill-fitting doors etc. And if they still raise concerns, commission a structural engineer's report. We did this on a property we were buying, and once we got the SE report back, we ran a mile.

Structural movement/subsidence can be a massive, MASSIVE headache, and is not something to be taken lightly IF the movement is recent/still moving. You must have both eyes open when buying a property with structural issues, as it can cost a lot of money/disruption to put right. 

Rising Damp - probably not this, no doubt damp from another reason
Electrics - unless the house is 1 day old, will not be up to current regulations. If it works, it works. Plan to update in the future
Water Pressure - get a plumber out to check. Could be a multitude of reasons, but should be fixable by a competent profession (gas engineer if the boiler)
Insulation - Personally, I would advise against getting wall insulation (a 1920's house would be designed to 'breathe' through the walls), but defo get it fitted in the loft. Cheap, a weekend job if you fancy it
Building Regs on utility room - Depending on the age of the extension, would be nice to have, but if not, what ya gonna do? Either walk away, or plan that, worst case scenario, you'll have to pull it down, and rebuild to current regs if necessary.  

In regards your original question 'Can you renegotiate?' Yes, you can try. But if the property has been priced accordingly, then the seller may be unwilling to accept a reduction.

Good luck