Selling house with asbestos

housebuyer7

Hello, when I bought my house the bank valuation and structural survey both came back suggesting asbestos may be in the roof tiles. 

I bought the house and then decided to get a test done as was considering a loft conversion. The test came back and showed the roof was made of cement tiles (kind of made to look a bit like slate) and contained chrysotile asbestos. In the end we did not get a loft conversion. 

Now we are coming to sell our house I am worried. I don’t think the roof needs replacing imminently but the tiles are starting to become friable. I’m worried buyers may not be able to get a mortgage on my property and may pull out. I take it declaring the asbestos is now a legal requirement, rather than leave it as suspected and let them find out themselves with their own asbestos survey?

user1977

Not a "legal requirement" to declare it but if you're asked the question you would have to either confirm its presence or refuse to answer...

Hoenir

Not an insurmountable problem. Replacing a cement tile roof requires a special skip to dispose of the material. Which incurs extra cost. The buyers surveyor will flag the issue. The roof presumably is coming towards the end of it's natural life. Which will be factored in to an valuation. 

Bigphil1474

We toyed with replacing our roof as it was on its last legs. In the end we didn't and the buyers survey flagged the age of the roof but they proceeded anyway. It wasn't asbestos tiles but replacing a roof isn't cheap these days. You could factor the cost of a new roof into the price, or give yourself a bit of wriggle room on the asking price if a buyer comes back after finding it's asbestos tiling, or get the roof replaced yourself. Getting the roof done now may be a good selling point, but it's an outlay. Personally, I'd just get the EA's valuation done and see how it goes. I'm not sure the roof would be enough to prevent a mortgage being offered given it's a fairly easy fix.

ThisIsWeird

AfaIk, no-one replaces a roof just because it's 'asbestos-cement'. They will ultimately replace the roof when it comes to the end of its natural life, or during works such as a loft conversion.

We had our loft done 20 years ago, and it was after the work had started that the builder flagged up it may be A-C. Yes, this required all the slates bagging up and taking away in a separate skip, but it was little extra hassle or cost, as I recall.

RHemmings

I bought a property with an old roof flagged as needing to be replaced 'sometime', and tiles on a 'wart' sticking out the back quite likely to contain asbestos. I know that at least the last three houses I previously lived in had asbestos. Houses sell, even with asbestos.

As above, just be honest if asked. 

penners324

It's not issue. My mother has just sold her 1970s house. Plenty of asbestos in it, including internally.

Buyers survey flagged it but wasn't a problem for the mortgage company