Would you buy a house that had previously had spray foam insulation?

Hmaz_2

FreeBear said:

It may take 6 months to find a decent contractor to do the work. Are you prepared to wait that long ?

No, definitely not.  My children are finding it very hard staying with family since we sold our house 3 months ago, so I need to move as soon as I can really.

My additional worry is  that as the gentleman selling the house is quite elderly he might just go for the quickest & cheapest contractor and they might not do the job very well

Hmaz_2

stuart45 said:

If it's got felt under the tiles there won't be a problem with the foam sticking to them.
How old is the house?

I imagine the house is around 75 years old

BikingBud

Hmaz_2 said:

I had an offer accepted recently on what I thought was my dream home.  A few weeks later I've been informed by the estate agent that it has spray foam insulation in the loft, which the vendor is going to have removed prior to me arranging a survey as he knows it's not mortgageable as it is. 

I hadn't heard much before about this type of insulation and am rather worried after reading up on it.  My question is, once removed if a survey didn't flag up any damage as a result of the insulation or its removal would you go ahead with the purchase? I'm worrying that people just knowing it once had spray foam would be put off and I could have problems reselling the property.  Or is there the risk of damage to the timbers already having been done but perhaps not evident until further down the line if that makes sense.  I suppose I mean is there now an increased risk of future rot even once removed.

I have no idea how long the insulation has been up there, who installed it etc. 

Any advice would be gratefully received.  This is the first house I'm buying on my own since getting divorced and I'm feeling rather clueless and definitely can't afford a new roof etc anytime soon! 

I think my dream home is one I build myself in an area that we select. In the meantime we live in a house that is quite functional and meets our needs. 

When you say you thought it was, then the disquiet you are feeling might be something you can manage or it might be taken out of your hands. Worst case, or perhaps best, the lender might block your purchase.

There will likely be costs either now surveys etc  or down stream potentially for roof replacement can you budget for these to achieve your dream?

Reality might also kick in and an older vendor might die and probate delays or inhibits everything anyway.

With too many variables and no clear path, coupled with the need to re-establish family basis without delay, I would walk.

FreeBear

Hmaz_2 said: My additional worry is  that as the gentleman selling the house is quite elderly he might just go for the quickest & cheapest contractor and they might not do the job very well

Moving in to a care home might mean the couple are at end of life. If the house goes to probate, that could add another 6-18 months wait. But yes, going for the cheapest/quickest contractor is the most immediate concern. Also bear in mind, any warranties offered with the work are unlikely to be transferred to yourself. So if you find problems after purchase, you'd need to find the money to fix them.

Would I buy a place with spray foam - Only if there was sufficient discount to cover removal that I commission.

Hmaz_2

BikingBud said:

Hmaz_2 said:

I had an offer accepted recently on what I thought was my dream home.  A few weeks later I've been informed by the estate agent that it has spray foam insulation in the loft, which the vendor is going to have removed prior to me arranging a survey as he knows it's not mortgageable as it is. 

I hadn't heard much before about this type of insulation and am rather worried after reading up on it.  My question is, once removed if a survey didn't flag up any damage as a result of the insulation or its removal would you go ahead with the purchase? I'm worrying that people just knowing it once had spray foam would be put off and I could have problems reselling the property.  Or is there the risk of damage to the timbers already having been done but perhaps not evident until further down the line if that makes sense.  I suppose I mean is there now an increased risk of future rot even once removed.

I have no idea how long the insulation has been up there, who installed it etc. 

Any advice would be gratefully received.  This is the first house I'm buying on my own since getting divorced and I'm feeling rather clueless and definitely can't afford a new roof etc anytime soon! 

I think my dream home is one I build myself in an area that we select. In the meantime we live in a house that is quite functional and meets our needs. 

When you say you thought it was, then the disquiet you are feeling might be something you can manage or it might be taken out of your hands. Worst case, or perhaps best, the lender might block your purchase.

There will likely be costs either now surveys etc  or down stream potentially for roof replacement can you budget for these to achieve your dream?

Reality might also kick in and an older vendor might die and probate delays or inhibits everything anyway.

With too many variables and no clear path, coupled with the need to re-establish family basis without delay, I would walk.

At the moment I can cover extra surveys but I can't really budget for major roof repairs as the house was right at the top of my budget.  I'm viewing another house this afternoon and one on Monday.  

I'm more than prepared to walk away from this one if I need to.  It seemed perfect when I viewed it (although needs work doing like kitchen and bathroom) but the worry of this roof insulation is making it seems less than ideal! 

Hmaz_2

FreeBear said:

Hmaz_2 said: My additional worry is  that as the gentleman selling the house is quite elderly he might just go for the quickest & cheapest contractor and they might not do the job very well

Moving in to a care home might mean the couple are at end of life. If the house goes to probate, that could add another 6-18 months wait. But yes, going for the cheapest/quickest contractor is the most immediate concern. Also bear in mind, any warranties offered with the work are unlikely to be transferred to yourself. So if you find problems after purchase, you'd need to find the money to fix them.

Would I buy a place with spray foam - Only if there was sufficient discount to cover removal that I commission.

Apparently he is quite well but missed his wife so much when she went into the home with dementia that he moved there to be with her. I do worry that maybe he isn't at well as the EA is saying and he could become ill, change his mind, not get the work to the roof done properly as he doesn't know a lot about it and isn't there. 

That's a good point about any warranty not being transferred to a new owner, I hadn't thought of that

WIAWSNB

Hi Hmaz_2.

How old is this property? What type of tile/slate does it have on the roof?

I have no idea what questions are asked in a mortgage application regarding foam insulation, but I suspect it'll be along the lines of "Does it have...?", and not, "Did it ever have?"

Personally, as long as it was removed with reasonable care, I would have no worries at all. I would not be concerned by remaining 'bits'. 

If it ever comes to having a slipped tile or slate replaced, the fact that a wee dob of foam is stuck to it will make zero difference. 

The good news is that the very mention of 'foam' is likely to put off other competing buyers :-)

I wish you a Happy New Home. 

Hmaz_2

I think the house was probably built in the 19040/50s but I may be wrong. 

The roof is tiled with a large dormer window to the front and the same at the back.  I've had another look at the photos on the house online and I can't see that there would be a lot of loft space to have been sprayed because of the style as it's more like a chalet bungalow really.  I'll try and attach a photo of what I mean

WIAWSNB

As you say, very little remaining original roof space!
All sounding promising, I'd say. 

FreeBear

Any idea when that dormer was constructed ?

Quite possible that it is very poorly insulated. So budgeting to strip out the walls & ceiling to stuff both with insulation would be prudent.