Mortgage valuation report states damp found - repairs needed - help

squarehead94

Hi all.
So selling my property, purchaser's lender instructed a RICS surveyor to assess the property. The report states damp was found in lower level of the property (ground floor, 2 story home) and he's down valued the property (average in the area is 75-80,000 - I'd agreed a sale at 70,000 and he has listed valuation of 66k) 
Now I've been reading online that apparantly they cannot assess whether damp is there or not with the equipment they use? they advise in the report to use a PCA Damp specialist to assess it. Firstly, who foots this bill, me or the buyer, secondly - can this be appealed? there is absolutely no sign of damp anywhere in the house, and thirdly, is there a minimum value the house has to be to loan the purchaser the money? eg would they still loan to the purchaser on the value of £70,000 but the valuation has come in at 66,000?

Panic mode in full flow, the purchaser is going to send me a copy of the report so i can come back on here with more specifics shortly.

Advice please

EDIT:
Notes from Essential Repairs (Please List)
Indications of were noted. A specialist PCA reg. firm should investigate cause and extent of dampness and timber decay if any, and effect remedial work and associated repairs as necessary. This should include an inspection of the sub floor void to the suspended timber ground. 

Also, property has textured ceiling coatings. In properties of this age such coatings could contain asbestos. Removal of these coatings would require the involvement of a specialist contractor before carrying out works. 

This seems to be absolutely ludicrous, again any advice appreciated

squarehead94

Also, I'm including some appliances in the sale (washer dryer, fridge freezer, TV, fireplace etc) so is there anything mortgage lender can do to consider these in the valuation? (They aren't cheap either)

K_S

@squarehead94

Who foots the bill - there's no rule as such but it's usually the buyer

Appeal - in theory, perhaps. But practically speaking it's very unlikely to work.

Minimum value - depends on the LTV. If they were borrowing at high LTV then a down valuation might mean they need to add to the deposit or jump up to a more expensive LTV band. If they're at low LTV, a down valuation is less likely to make a huge difference.

Appliances - not relevant for the lender valuation

squarehead94 said:

Hi all.
So selling my property, purchaser's lender instructed a RICS surveyor to assess the property. The report states damp was found in lower level of the property (ground floor, 2 story home) and he's down valued the property (average in the area is 75-80,000 - I'd agreed a sale at 70,000 and he has listed valuation of 66k) 
Now I've been reading online that apparantly they cannot assess whether damp is there or not with the equipment they use? they advise in the report to use a PCA Damp specialist to assess it. Firstly, who foots this bill, me or the buyer, secondly - can this be appealed? there is absolutely no sign of damp anywhere in the house, and thirdly, is there a minimum value the house has to be to loan the purchaser the money? eg would they still loan to the purchaser on the value of £70,000 but the valuation has come in at 66,000?

Panic mode in full flow, the purchaser is going to send me a copy of the report so i can come back on here with more specifics shortly.

Advice please

EDIT:
Notes from Essential Repairs (Please List)
Indications of were noted. A specialist PCA reg. firm should investigate cause and extent of dampness and timber decay if any, and effect remedial work and associated repairs as necessary. This should include an inspection of the sub floor void to the suspended timber ground. 

Also, property has textured ceiling coatings. In properties of this age such coatings could contain asbestos. Removal of these coatings would require the involvement of a specialist contractor before carrying out works. 

This seems to be absolutely ludicrous, again any advice appreciated

user1977

squarehead94 said:

Also, I'm including some appliances in the sale (washer dryer, fridge freezer, TV, fireplace etc) so is there anything mortgage lender can do to consider these in the valuation? (They aren't cheap either)

No, their mortgage won't be covering them so they're irrelevant from the lender's point of view.

MWT

squarehead94 said:

Also, property has textured ceiling coatings. In properties of this age such coatings could contain asbestos. Removal of these coatings would require the involvement of a specialist contractor before carrying out works. 

This seems to be absolutely ludicrous, again any advice appreciated

When was your house built?

Prior to the mid-80's it was very common to use ceiling textures with asbestos in them.

Our house was built in 1987 and I have had the material tested and fortunately it does not contain asbestos. Similar concerns regarding soffit boards from before that period as well.

Testing is cheap though and if your house was built around the 80's, or you know that the ceiling textures were applied around that period it is worth getting the testing done as the question is likely to keep coming up...

ACG

- The damp survey can be paid for by either side. Its down to negotiation. 
- The asbestos comment is just a notice. We had one on the house we bought. If they do not mention it, they could be held liable. Its not affected the property value by the sounds of it. 
- The appliances - no effect at all. 

There must be some signs of damp, they have not just mentioned it for fun. The tools they have I think measure moisture, that does not confirm damp but could be an indication. 

The surveyors works for the lender, not you or the buyer.

You can dig your heels in and refuse to negotiate. You can negotiate, you can ask the buyer to try a different lender and hope for a different surveyor or you can find a new buyer. The problem with a new lender is that rates have shot up in the last week so your buyers may be reluctant.

I dont think it is worth the buyer appealing. I have appealed a few valuation over the years, you are asking the surveyor to admit they were wrong and would need to provide evidence they have not already seen (which is unlikely). I remember putting war and peace together on a property I knew the surveyor had got wrong - he was from about 15-20 miles away, the house for sale was on a street I grew up on. His valuation was well out, he refused to back down despite pages and pages of evidence. Sent to a new lender and all was ok.