Floor Survey

BJM9999

Hello,

Survey from first property, a first floor leasehold apartment, has come back and as I noticed myself has flagged up a spongyness in the bathroom flooring next to the shower. It advised me to get it looked at but was wondering what type of survey I should look to get to confirm the issue and how it could be done? 

Any help appreciated.

Mark_d

So you're in the process of purchasing a leasehold apartment and a survey has flagged up an issue?

I don't think there's a lot you can do directly in terms of confirming the issue.   You could revise your offer downwards to account for the work you might need to do to rectify the issue (replacing the floorboards and flooring).  Alternatively you could suggest that that the seller resolves the flooring issue before you can commit t purchasing the property

BJM9999

Mark_d said:

So you're in the process of purchasing a leasehold apartment and a survey has flagged up an issue?

I don't think there's a lot you can do directly in terms of confirming the issue.   You could revise your offer downwards to account for the work you might need to do to rectify the issue (replacing the floorboards and flooring).  Alternatively you could suggest that that the seller resolves the flooring issue before you can commit t purchasing the property

Yes, flagged up an issue and said it should be investigated but no idea how to be done.

Could I hire a builder to go in take out floorboards and assess the damage to then report to seller to renegotiate on price or get them to fix before completion?

BarelySentientAI

BJM9999 said:

Mark_d said:

So you're in the process of purchasing a leasehold apartment and a survey has flagged up an issue?

I don't think there's a lot you can do directly in terms of confirming the issue.   You could revise your offer downwards to account for the work you might need to do to rectify the issue (replacing the floorboards and flooring).  Alternatively you could suggest that that the seller resolves the flooring issue before you can commit t purchasing the property

Yes, flagged up an issue and said it should be investigated but no idea how to be done.

Could I hire a builder to go in take out floorboards and assess the damage to then report to seller to renegotiate on price or get them to fix before completion?

Why would the seller agree to you taking floorboards out?

FreeBear

BarelySentientAI said:

BJM9999 said:

Mark_d said:

So you're in the process of purchasing a leasehold apartment and a survey has flagged up an issue?

I don't think there's a lot you can do directly in terms of confirming the issue.   You could revise your offer downwards to account for the work you might need to do to rectify the issue (replacing the floorboards and flooring).  Alternatively you could suggest that that the seller resolves the flooring issue before you can commit t purchasing the property

Yes, flagged up an issue and said it should be investigated but no idea how to be done.

Could I hire a builder to go in take out floorboards and assess the damage to then report to seller to renegotiate on price or get them to fix before completion?

Why would the seller agree to you taking floorboards out?

Highly unlikely the vendor would agree.

It might uncover serious rot in the joists which would be expensive to repair.

Albermarle

BJM9999 said:

Hello,

Survey from first property, a first floor leasehold apartment, has come back and as I noticed myself has flagged up a spongyness in the bathroom flooring next to the shower. It advised me to get it looked at but was wondering what type of survey I should look to get to confirm the issue and how it could be done? 

Any help appreciated.

I would guess this could be a relatively serious issue. Shower has probably been leaking for some time and flooring around it has gone rotten. Probably the whole shower might have to come out, joists replaced etc.Maybe a new shower unit.
Not a major, major job, but would not cost peanuts either.

ThisIsWeird

BJM9999 said:

Hello,

Survey from first property, a first floor leasehold apartment, has come back and as I noticed myself has flagged up a spongyness in the bathroom flooring next to the shower. It advised me to get it looked at but was wondering what type of survey I should look to get to confirm the issue and how it could be done? 

Any help appreciated.

Hi BJM.
You noticed this 'sponginess' yourself, and the survey also reported this issue independently? In which case, you can assume there is a problem :-)
The fact it's in the vicinity of the shower would reinforce the likely cause - joist rot due to a long-term leak.
One other party also knows there's an issue, and that's the vendor. They do know. They must. They certainly shouldn't be able to deny it now...
What to do? It's probably unlikely they'll allow a 'destructive' examination, such as a surveyor coming in to rip up their floors for a looksee, so all you can do is to get some ballpark quotes for having it sorted assuming it's as wot folk assume. Most builders, if you give them enough info, will do this. They can even come out and 'jump', and give their reasoned judgement. Then you renegotiate using this sum - it's up to you how far to push it.
A possible other aspect to this is the FH's communal buildings insurance policy, to which all LH's contribute. If this flat-owner, a Leaseholder, was genuinely unaware of what was happening so could do nothing to prevent it, then the buildings insurance is usually called on to sort what is now a 'communal' structural problem, as it also involves the ceiling of the flat below, and - if left unsorted - could bring it all down, quite possibly mid-shower :-). So, the buildings insurance should cover the joists, flooring, and ceiling, and each individual 'contents' insurance would likely then sort the decorative flooring covering, the ceiling painting, and suchlike. 
The LH is technically only liable if they were 'negligent' - eg, knew there was a leak, or knew the floor was becoming springy, but then did nothing about it. Good chance they did know, but good luck proving it... 
What to do? I'd pass on the responsibility for sorting this back on to the vendor. Make it clear there is almost certainly a significant issue that needs resolving, and tell them it also involves the Freeholder. If they refuse, then I guess your option is to revise your offer accordingly, based on the ballpark figures offered by a builder. 

BonaDea

I had a similar problem in a rental flat I owned.  There was a concealed leak in a pipe embedded in the wall of the shower, which didn't become apparent until one of the floor tiles began to lift because, it turned out, a huge fungus growing on the wet timber underneath was pushing it up.  This was potentially dangerous (I had visions of a tenant taking a shower and falling through the floor) so all of it, joists and all, had to be replaced straight away.  The cost was covered by the buildings insurance but actually wasn't as bad as I'd feared - from memory, in the region of £1000-12000, although this was about 15 years ago.  But, OP, you should certainly get the vendor to sort it out before you buy, and it should be covered his his/her buildings insurance.

Albermarle

 from memory, in the region of £1000-12000,

That's a big range !

But, OP, you should certainly get the vendor to sort it out before you buy, and it should be covered his his/her buildings insurance.

Especially as already mentioned in a previous post, there could be one of the usual freeholder - leaseholder disputes about whose insurance should be paying. 

youth_leader

I missed a 'hint' the vendor gave me on the telephone, that she'd 'overwatered' a plant in the back bedroom and the carpet was water damaged.  

I didn't visit before exchange and bought the bungalow.  When I had a curtain fitter here he told me the floor was dangerous and he couldn't continue as he thought he'd go through .... when we pulled the carpets up, every floor in the bungalow was rotten, black with sugar like mould and mushy, with the exception of the concrete floor in the extension.

I'd recommend spending the money on an independent damp/timber survey, I wish I had.

BonaDea

Apologies OP, fat finger here as Albemarle spotted!  It should have read £1000-£1200.