House buyer - red ash

mrs1978

Hi got my eye on a house and the vendor has shared there was red ash in the flooring however in 2023 whole ground floor renovation completed and certified with also insulation added.
Is there going to be issue for mortgage and other than asking for the certificate what else do I need to ensure?

Also there is a loft conversion with valux window added, they have said loft not certified and needs weight baring floor added. There is only a ladder and no room to put full stairs.
Will this be an issue for mortgage also ?

Many thanks in advance ☺️ 

Brie

Is it that the loft that hasn't had planning permission or just that the lighting wasn't done by a proper electrician?  Problems either way.  

And if you can only access the loft via a ladder then I wouldn't be considering that anything other than a loft and not have it taken into account with the price of the place, i.e. it can't be a bedroom adding value.  I think a mortgage valuer might think the same. 

mrs1978

I am not sure if they got planning permission. They have said it requires weight baring flooring as only boarded before certification. However yes like you say only a ladder which fumbles the whole plan.
They haven't marketed it as a room. Just storage space. 

More concerned about the fixed red ash whether it can rear it's ugly head later on. 

GDB2222

mrs1978 said:

Hi got my eye on a house and the vendor has shared there was red ash in the flooring however in 2023 whole ground floor renovation completed and certified with also insulation added.
Is there going to be issue for mortgage and other than asking for the certificate what else do I need to ensure?

Also there is a loft conversion with valux window added, they have said loft not certified and needs weight baring floor added. There is only a ladder and no room to put full stairs.
Will this be an issue for mortgage also ?

Many thanks in advance ☺️ 

The floor needs major  strengthening. Apart from the cost, this will reduce the head height.

No proper access. So, it's not a loft conversion. It's a loft with a Velux window, which adds no value to its use for storage.

Presumably no planning permission or building control.

No proper fire protection. 

It's possibly worth a few hundred more than the house down the road that doesn't have the Velux window. 

stuart45

mrs1978 said:

Hi got my eye on a house and the vendor has shared there was red ash in the flooring however in 2023 whole ground floor renovation completed and certified with also insulation added.
Is there going to be issue for mortgage and other than asking for the certificate what else do I need to ensure?

Also there is a loft conversion with valux window added, they have said loft not certified and needs weight baring floor added. There is only a ladder and no room to put full stairs.
Will this be an issue for mortgage also ?

Many thanks in advance ☺️ 

I don't think there's any real issues. Replacing a concrete floor with insulation and a DPM will stop any sulphate attacks, and you've got better access to light storage space than an unboarded loft. It's not being marketed as a bedroom.

Albermarle

Some people use these boarded out lofts, for things other than storage. I know somebody who let their teenage son use it for drum practice.
However that is not recommended as the floor is not strengthened, and there is a potential problem of escaping in a fire situation.