HomeBuyers Report is Back - will the seller fix?

spotty_dog343

Had an offer accepted on a property, all looked good - until the homebuyers report. Thinking do I pull out, or go ahead with the further inspections?

The report has some things that had 3's and needed investigating more:

the roof:

• The main roof coverings are nearing the end of their performance life and need comprehensive overhaul or replacement. Patch mortar repairs have been carried out between some of the tiles. This would appear to be an attempt to prolong the lifespan of the roof but is not a recommended practice.
• Bedding mortar to the ridge tiles and hip tiles is defective and needs replacing. A few tiles are damaged and cracked, localised repair is needed. 

• There is damp staining to the rear left bedroom ceiling. This appears to have been caused by a leak to the roof. Repairs and improvements are needed. There is also a risk of associated decay in adjacent timbers and you should ensure that these are also inspected. 

potential damp:

• I recorded high damp meter readings to the ground floor walls. This appears to have been caused by the high external ground levels. It should be noted that the high readings were isolated and the majority of readings taken were within acceptable tolerances. However in light of the high external ground levels (these should be at least 150mm below the damp proof course level) further investigation by a member of the Property Care Association or similar is required to determine the extent of the dampness and the cost of remedial works. There is also a risk of associated decay in adjacent timbers and you should ensure that these are also inspected.
• The site slopes towards the property and this will direct surface water towards the building increasing the risks of damp. To reduce this risk drainage to the site should be improved and you should obtain further advice and cost estimates from an appropriately qualified person such as a drainage contractor before exchange of contract
• the detached garage is rotten, woodworm and damp

spotty_dog343

Do I send the HomeBuyers report to the estate agents?

dimbo61

Why would you send the Home buyers report which you have paid for to the estate agents ?
I am guessing that you want the estate agents  to pass on the report to the vendors who will then lower the asking price ? 
When you viewed the property did you look up at the roof ?
Your not buying a brand new property so you need to consider the overall condition of the building.
You can of course ask for a reduction in the price due to the fact the roof might need replacing in the next few years.
It would be wise to remove some of the soil against the house which is close to the damp proof course.
Your call 
PS you need a new garage after you have knocked down and removed and disposed of the old one which may have asbestos roof or panels 

Spiderroo

The seller won't fix these things for you, if they wanted to fix them before they sold they would have.

Having a roof replaced is a large job - we're planning to have it done on a house we're buying and we've been quoted £12k (a whole new roof and some chimney pointing) plus have to wait at least 6 months for the roofer to be available. You could try and negotiate on the price based on this if it's not obvious the roof is damaged from the ground, we did this and got about 50% of the work cost off the property price but our roof has reached the end of its life and has a lot of tiles missing so it needs doing sooner rather than later! 

On the garage and damp in the bedroom, did you spot these when you were going round? If I was a seller I would push back that a wet patch and rotting wood is pretty visible so your original offer should have reflected that. 

If you want to try and negotiate on price you need to send a revised offer to the agent and explain your reasoning, including how you justify the amount you've taken off. We had workmen quote for everything we needed (it's a long list!) and only asked for a discount for the big ticket items that we'd fully investigated and definitely needed doing (not the potential damp proof course, the cavity wall ties, wonky floor, etc). We also negotiated so we offered slightly less than we were happy to pay and negotiated to our upper limit for our revised offer. 

DullGreyGuy

Aren't bullets one and two a little contradictory? First says comprehensive replacement or overhaul but second says localised repair.

Assuming you haven't exchanged you could ask the seller to fix it but what assurances do you have that they'd have a good job done? How are you going to validate it? Your rights if a problem happened in 6 months after buying it would be minimal. Why'd the vendor agree to pay for something which they didn't see the need to before with no guarantee that you'll proceed with the sale?

Its much better to negotiate the price, though they will inevitably say the roof was visible and its condition reflected in the price, and have any works done yourself where you can better control quality and have rights against the tradesmen should there be a later issue with the repairs.

FreeBear

spotty_dog343 said: However in light of the high external ground levels (these should be at least 150mm below the damp proof course level) further investigation by a member of the Property Care Association or similar is required to determine the extent of the dampness and the cost of remedial works. There is also a risk of associated decay in adjacent timbers and you should ensure that these are also inspected.

The PCA is the trade association for the damp treatment industry - The qualifications to join their "club" is pretty low, and their primary function is to promote and sell a range of damp "cures". For the vast majority of home owners, these treatments are only effective in the short term and do little to fix the underlying cause. The PCA also promote a bunch of other highly damaging products such as spray foam insulation.. See a pattern here ?

Your surveyor has identified two potential causes. Neither should be expensive to fix. Elevated ground levels need to be reduced. This can be achieved by digging a ~300mm wide trench around the perimeter of the building and filling with gravel. Depending on the type of soil (e.g. heavy clay), you may need to add some perforated drainage and pipe any water further away from the building. The trench only needs to be deep enough for ~50-75mm of gravel finishing 150mm below the DPC if the footings/foundations allow. Having this trench in place (otherwise known as a French Drain) will also divert any surface water running down the sloping ground towards the building.