Need advice / reassurance after level 2 survey

savingholmes

So the valuation came out okay but says this assumes building regs satisfied for various things and then goes on to list all the areas the regs don't appear to have been complied with such as wiring, plumbing, extension, glazing, doors. The extension pre-dates the current owner but there are issues with the diy work the current owner has done. The property appears to be over 40 years old. It's a 3 bed detached in the north with a flat roof extension to the back and a flat roof on the garage. It's had a single story extension in the past by about 50% and has then had an open plan area created to the rear in an L shape.  

Advice welcome - I've tried to get some indicative quotes on the net from the check website but anything you can do to help would be appreciated. 

Worst condition rating

1. asbestos - on the net it indicated costs could be thousands if I needed to remove it. It's around the roofline for definite - but may be elsewhere in the house - but given the current owner has replastered - it may not be there. It's in the undercloaking boards - and given the sofits are rotten and the guttering needs replacing - I'm worried the latter two can't be done without resolving at least some of the first. Is that correct? Recommends asbestos survey
2. gable walls not properly restrained - no idea of costs
   
3. bad repair to a gang plate on the roof truss - not sure what that means. Lacks ventilation.
4. electrics and plumbing non compliant - suggested I got special surveys for those. The seller told me he had the whole place rewired - but the survey suggests it was done badly - and the sign off certificate is missing. He also put in a new bathroom and did various plumbing - which the surveyor described as amateur and non compliant - badly configured, pipework not lagged etc. Soil pipe not boxed in.
5. gas - recommends survey - although the seller original promised he'd get it serviced before exchange - would that then resolve the gas safety check?
6. drainage seems non compliant - he suggested putting in new gulleys which sounds expensive - and said the soil vent pipes were missing / not visible. There are no obvious manhole covers and he thinks they were wrongly covered up by the extension - he recommends a drainage survey.
   
7. lacks mains smoke alarms - £250 to fix it looks like if I had one alarm upstairs and one down (this I am more comfortable with)
   

Second rating

1. lack of fensa / kite marks on glass - so may not be compliant therefore potentially unsafe - he told me he had replaced the glass in 3 windows, but it appears the internal glazed doors lack kite marks on the glass too and a glazing unit above the bathroom door
2. age of property means lack of damp proofing - he suggested a fix of relaying the floors - but I assume I can ignore that as he also said he didn't find damp - would cost thousands as I believe it is a solid floor
3. main roof may need refelting - could easily be £5K - the question then would be what are the tiles made of - as if they are asbestos too - they'd need to be removed and replaced. 
4. rainwater pipes and guttering need replacing - discharge to the ground 
5. lack of cavity wall trays above extension. I plan to replace the failed patio door with bifold doors - would this then be an opportunity to resolve this? How big a job is adding the cavity wall trays at that point to that area? They would still be missing above the back door and a large window...

Any advice much appreciated. First time buying alone so everything feels huge!!

koalakoala

Personally I would walk away.

jonnydeppiwish!

Asbestos - I wouldn’t worry as most pre 1980s house have it. Soffits will just be covered over.

Electrics and plumbing - surveyor is neither an electrician or plumber so cannot say whether they are up to current regs. Get electrics tested along with gas.

As for soil pipe, does it come through the roof rather than the side of the house?

Why does the roof felt need replacing? Are there gaping holes or is this a future job that needs to be done?

How old are the windows? If old then agenda means nothing. Kite marks on internal doors/glazing - just replace as and when for safety glass.

How old is the property? What lack of damp proofing are they talking about?

Guttering - again why does it need replacing? Does it just need cleaning out and reconnecting?

Are there any build over agreements in place for any potential drains? Are drain covers/manholes hidden by furniture/carpets? Remember that a lot of surveyors won’t move anything, just look.

Smoke alarms, along with a CO2 alarm, £30 from B&Q.

Have the gullets (presume by the external walls?) been covered?

Id only be concerned with the Gable and roof truss, assuming the extension has BR sign off (how old is it?).

Are you a first time buyer? Surveys can be very daunting but try to remember that the surveyor is covering their own backside.

ManuelG

I thught the asbestos, electricity and gas warnings were kind of standard on surveys?

Gas I'd be happy with a recent service, electricity would be how recent it looked to me and, if concerned, I'd maybe get it checked out, but it usually is what it is.

Do you need mains smoke detectors? Wouldn't you be happy with battery ones in every bedroom and living room? nice and cheap from a DIY place, easy to install too.

Have you spoken to the surveyor? Mine was a lot more reassuring when chatting through it (where he was happy to tell me not to bother with half of it, and confirm he had to put it down but really only to cover himself!) than his report was!

savingholmes

jonnydeppiwish! said:

Asbestos - I wouldn’t worry as most pre 1980s house have it. Soffits will just be covered over.

Electrics and plumbing - surveyor is neither an electrician or plumber so cannot say whether they are up to current regs. Get electrics tested along with gas.

As for soil pipe, does it come through the roof rather than the side of the house? - there's a soil pipe coming from upstairs above the kitchen cabinets and it hasn't been boxed in. I'm assuming that's a simple enough 

Why does the roof felt need replacing? Are there gaping holes or is this a future job that needs to be done? - he does say there's no damp, but says there are rips etc, lack of ventilation etc

How old are the windows? If old then agenda means nothing. Kite marks on internal doors/glazing - just replace as and when for safety glass. I don't know how old the windows are - but the backdoor is new but hasn't been finished properly inside - and the internal doors look new - but don't have kite marks on glazing. Presumably I could reduce related risks by putting film over initially? 

How old is the property? 1980 ish What lack of damp proofing are they talking about? No damp proof below solid floor (assumed). He also says some of the ground levels outside are too high and need resolving.

Guttering - again why does it need replacing? Does it just need cleaning out and reconnecting? - It was obvious even to me that it was failing - it was pouring down outside the guttering as it's come away from each other etc. I could cope if that was one of the few things - but the list seemed to be adding up...

Are there any build over agreements in place for any potential drains? Are drain covers/manholes hidden by furniture/carpets? Remember that a lot of surveyors won’t move anything, just look. There's laminate flooring down in the extension. Will ask conveyancer about any agreements... 

Smoke alarms, along with a CO2 alarm, £30 from B&Q. I've allowed for cost of electrician to install as I don't have skills to mains wire it.

Have the gullets (presume by the external walls?) been covered? Gulleys - don't know. The ground slopes outside towards the house which he said increased the risk.

Id only be concerned with the Gable and roof truss, assuming the extension has BR sign off (how old is it?). I don't know how old the extension is just that it predates 2017. Given what else I've found out about the property including a part converted garage with no building regs - I don't think BR sign off is in place.

Are you a first time buyer? Surveys can be very daunting but try to remember that the surveyor is covering their own backside.
Not a FTB but always bought as a couple before and never had a proper survey done before.

Thanks @jonnydeppiwish!

Blackcats

I think you need to know more detail about what non-compliant electrics and plumbing means.  Non-compliance sounds more serious than not great DIY efforts,  If you ever decide to sell the house in the future this issue will come up again and you will be expected to explain/resolve it.

gable wall not properly restrained makes me nervous although I have absolutely no expertise on this.  If you need scaffolding, roofers, structural engineer, sign-off etc this might be expensive.

you definitely need clarity on building regs.  A list of what work needs building regs.   Then what building regs evidence is there for each work that needs building regs.  Again you might decide that you are ok proceeding without building regs (though I doubt it) but lack of sign off will come back to haunt you if you try to sell in the future.

by way of balance, the surveyor is working on your behalf in order to give you a thorough report on your potential purchase.  The surveyor will be risk-averse on your behalf.  

I agree with @ManuelG - a conversation with the surveyor will help you gather information to help inform next steps.  

savingholmes

Thanks @ManuelG and @Blackcats

I spoke to him briefly the day of the survey and the main things he was bothered about then was a bucket on a roof, the electrics and the plumbing, the guttering I already knew about and the patio door. That was why reading the survey was a bit of shock. It's that thing of I got the report as they closed the Friday before Xmas and there's no-one to check it out with until Tuesday and it made grim reading.

My sis has read it and feels like it's just their backside covering of potential risks rather than findings. Will see how things develop.

stuart45

Blackcats said:gable wall not properly restrained makes me nervous although I have absolutely no expertise on this.  If you need scaffolding, roofers, structural engineer, sign-off etc this might be expensive.

Gable end restraint is just galvanised L shaped bars fixed to the rafters and through the internal skin. They are built in from new. They only started being used after the 87 hurricane which brought quite a few gable ends down.
The majority of gable ends in the country are not restrained, so it's not always a problem. They can be retro fitted to the underside of the rafters and screwed to the wall.

mark_cycling00

I didn't know that.
What a well-informed and probably reassuring answer. Thanks 

savingholmes

stuart45 said:

Blackcats said:gable wall not properly restrained makes me nervous although I have absolutely no expertise on this.  If you need scaffolding, roofers, structural engineer, sign-off etc this might be expensive.

Gable end restraint is just galvanised L shaped bars fixed to the rafters and through the internal skin. They are built in from new. They only started being used after the 87 hurricane which brought quite a few gable ends down.
The majority of gable ends in the country are not restrained, so it's not always a problem. They can be retro fitted to the underside of the rafters and screwed to the wall.

Thanks that is reassuring. Really appreciate you taking the time to respond @stuart45

stuart45

savingholmes said:

stuart45 said:

Blackcats said:gable wall not properly restrained makes me nervous although I have absolutely no expertise on this.  If you need scaffolding, roofers, structural engineer, sign-off etc this might be expensive.

Gable end restraint is just galvanised L shaped bars fixed to the rafters and through the internal skin. They are built in from new. They only started being used after the 87 hurricane which brought quite a few gable ends down.
The majority of gable ends in the country are not restrained, so it's not always a problem. They can be retro fitted to the underside of the rafters and screwed to the wall.

Thanks that is reassuring. Really appreciate you taking the time to respond @stuart45

No problem @savingholmes, hope it helps, I get plenty of good advice here.
Your question about the gang plate.
The gang plates are the connector metal plates you see joining the various timber parts of trussed rafters. They are pushed into place with hydraulic pressure in the factory, so the trussed rafters arrive on site in one piece ready to pitch the roof. 
To replace one it's hard to hammer them in properly, so ideally you a portable press to fix them properly instu. As trussed rafters are designed to use the minimum amount of timber, it's important that the connector plates are well fixed.