House buying, survey uncovered issues, looking for advice

jamboree_play

Hi, (apologies in advance for the long post!)

FTB here, I had an offer accepted on a house about 6 weeks ago, and had a survey done on it straight after. The survey flagged a large number of "very urgent" issues (14 in total), some of which are relatively unconcerning/ quick and easy fixes (e.g. missing stair bannisters, missing fire alarms, checking for copies of certificates etc), but a couple seem quite worrying/ potentially costly, I had a follow up investigation on a couple of bits (outlined below), but then I am having difficulty working out whether its overly cautious surveying making me worry or whether they are genuinely real concerns that should make me reconsider. After paying deposits, legal costs, etc I should hopefully have a buffer of around £10k in savings to cover any potential repair/ redecs needed, but obviously ideally don't want to blow all this instantly as I have a number of other things I could do with spending it on + generally feel like keeping a bit in reserve is always sensible.

First up is theres a few damp areas - one in the kitchen which seems like it might be quite bad as the door frame leading from the kitchen to the back yard has started rotting, and looks a bit like someone has tried to redecorate to cover it up at some point, as well as what looks like some staining to the floor around the doorframe. The rest is located around chimney stacks, which suggests issues on the roof/ chimney that likely require a roof survey (likely just the chimney flashing but could be something else). I had a damp report which quoted around £4k to damp-proof everywhere where damp was found and replaster etc, as well as swap the rotten doorframe, fix some guttering and improve ventilation which are suspected causes, but they said they wouldn't advise doing the chimney work without knowing the underlying issue on the roof. I would also need to redecorate anywhere they damp-proofed (likely this would just be a paint job as they would replaster etc). Obviously some of this stuff might not be that important to get fixed, but also strikes me as it would only get worse if left, but maybe I could just get the most pressing bits done?.

Next is there is woodworm in the floor joists below the ground floor. This is visible from the basement, although the damp report and survey both said they cannot assess the extent as there is an underdrawn ceiling with only a small patch of the timber actually visible. I got given a ballpark figure of ~£2.5k for replacing the joists if needed, and would be less if it just needs a bit of wood treatment(?), although if its that serious I imagine it would probably result in a bunch of further work too? (e.g. presumably they would have to take up the entire lounge floor that is above the basement?) So does £2.5k seem like an underestimate for this? And because the ceiling would need to come down to assess this, I am not sure I can get this assessed before purchase? Seems like regardless of the eventual fix, I cannot leave or ignore the woodworm issue without knowing the extent/ if its still active.

Finally there are a number of "still concerning" but (in my mind atleast) slightly less critical issues, like an aging electric consumer unit that might suggest the house needs some rewiring, a suggestion that the roof is "nearing the end of its economic life" (although not assessed in the properly in the survey), couple of windows with misting/ couple of window frames that are rotting, cracked plaster on wall/ ceilings, but I think I would generally chalk these up to it being an old house, and are things I could slowly tackle after moving in (although do correct me if I'm wrong!).

For context the house is an early 1900s stonebuilt terrace, with a quite common layout for the area - 4 floors including a basement and a second floor loft conversion. Also complicating things is that the paperwork is already done (it happened way quicker than I expected - my offer was only accepted in late Sept and I was expected a good 3 month wait so thought I had lots more time!), I have a copy of the deed waiting to be signed (which I am holding off on) and they are wanting to arrange a completion date (they initially said 21st Nov, which is very close!), and am getting pressured by the estate agents who want to know whats going on. Additionally I am renting and have a limited amount of time before I will have to commit to a new rental contract (currently have an agreement with the landlord on a rolling basis but they want to tie me back down), so have some pressures my end to make a decision on what to do.

My current possible options:

- try and re-negotiate a lower price based on what I know so far, and if successful just carry on with the buy and take the hit on the repairs. If so, what sort of scale should I go for on price reduction? (Currently price is £196.5k - I was thinking to try like £192k) Repairing everything on the survey would likely be well over £15k, but hard to argue that I would choose to buy a 100+ year old house and expect to have 0 issues needing addressing, and suspect they would try push back that I am buying the house in its current condition etc, but I would argue the house was sold to me as it is in "ready to move in" condition so I only anticipated minor costs. 
- try and get a roof (and also electric?) survey done before making a decision.
- walk away at this point/ after the extra surveys if they reveal even more issues - I will presumably lose all of the money spent so far doing this (which is currently around £1200ish), as well as putting me back to square one which brings me other issues around the rent etc. Given the paperwork is complete, will I also owe the full whack on the solicitors fees if I do this (a further £1300ish)?


Generally feel like I've got myself in a bit of a mess here (live and learn I guess!) and I don't know what to do, I do like the house, and don't want to lose it/ have to go back to square one, but just worried I'm about to take on too much work, so would welcome any opinions.

HobgoblinBT

The Renters Rights reform bill passed a couple of weeks ago changed tenancies so that landlords can no longer insist on a fixed term tenancy on “renewal” so that is not an issue and the letting agent should know better.

As to your proposed house purchase, what was the valuation in the survey compared to your offer?  Is your offer price higher or lower than the valuation in the survey that is based on the condition of the property when surveyed? 

 If it is valued at less than the agreed price you have a good argument to renegotiate, or even ask the vendor to do some of the work. If you pull out, the vendor will still have a house that needs work doing so you might be in a good position to renegotiate.  If valued higher than your offer you have less leverage to negotiate.  Either way, renegotiation on price at a later date stage won’t help your relationship with the vendor.

Albermarle

It would be surprising that in a house like that if no damp was detected.
You will get a number of replies saying to ignore the damp treatment salesman you have had contact with, as most things they normally suggest do not work and are costly.
It sounds like there is a problem around the kitchen door, but the key is to find the source of the damp and deal with it. Sounds like you will need a new door frame though and some replastering/redecorating, after you have sorted out where the damp is coming from..

like an aging electric consumer unit that might suggest the house needs some rewiring, 
More likely that just a new consumer unit needs to be fitted at some point in the future.

a suggestion that the roof is "nearing the end of its economic life" (although not assessed in the properly in the survey)
Budget for a new roof sometime in the next ten years.

 couple of windows with misting/ couple of window frames that are rotting, 

Probably max £1000 for two new windows.

Some repairs to the Chimney - £500 ?

There is always the possibility of something more expensive does crop up, but overall none of the things mentioned seem like a game changer. Maybe try £192K but be prepared to at least meet in the middle ?

jamboree_play

Hi both, thanks for the responses.

Interesting on the renters rights - having a rolling rent for up to 6 months was what was agreed when my original fixed term finished in September, I will have to go read up on the bill, but from what you're saying sounds like they can no longer hold me to their wish to put me back onto a fixed tenancy at the end of that period if I'm still renting.

On the valuation - my survey did not actually give a valuation, but I could go back and contact the surveyor to ask if its something they did, or could retrospectively make an assessment on if not. The only thing I do have is the summary statement from the surveyor: "In my opinion this property is a reasonable proposition for purchase. Defects noted within this report are common in properties of this age and type. Provided you are prepared to deal with the cost and inconvenience, these should not adversely impact the property upon resale."  - which to me feels like a bit of a null statement really - "if you fix problems, the house won't lose value", but maybe means the valuation is about right, in surveyor speak?

On the damp - yes I think I would not go all in and fix everything immediately there, but try and address the causes first. Good to see the interpretations on the other survey findings were probably about right that these other things can just be post move in projects to work on as and when.


Guess my only other query is if anyone has experience on the woodworm question, and whether its likely to be something that might snowball? If the £2.5k quote seems like a reasonable one for a worst case then thats not super worrying.

Albermarle

The only thing I do have is the summary statement from the surveyor: "In my opinion this property is a reasonable proposition for purchase. Defects noted within this report are common in properties of this age and type. Provided you are prepared to deal with the cost and inconvenience, these should not adversely impact the property upon resale."  - which to me feels like a bit of a null statement really - "if you fix problems, the house won't lose value", but maybe means the valuation is about right, in surveyor speak?

It means they have not found anything very serious.

kimwp

Just to note that a 100 year old house is not an old house and being 100 years old does not prevent the current owner doing repairs and maintenance. 

Bigphil1474

OP, the survey report sounds like the one on the house we sold last year. 1930's Mid terrace over 4 floors with damp on the chimney and cellar, suspected woodworm etc etc. We had our own damp survey done as the first buyer pulled out. The surveyor was quite honest with us and said he would have to recommend a chemical damp treatment even though it wasn't a good solution, but he did offer other solutions. Anyway, I can't remember exactly what he said about the woodworm in the kitchen joists/cellar area, but he said it was a type of woodworm/weevil that only survives in damp conditions and if we reduce the damp levels they'd die off on their own so no treatment required. We had some repointing done on the outside, had a drainage channel installed and fitted an extraction fan, to deal with the damp in that area. Cost about £1k I think. Don't do the chemical damp treatment. It only lasts a few years and is really just masking the problem.
We were told our roof was nearing the end of it's economic life as well - it was solid and leak free so no need to replace it for me. Our roofer agreed. 

Myci85

You say this is a stone cottage? In which case I would recommend doing some research on damp in relation to stone built places. Chemical damp proofing won't work, you need to find the source of damp and rectify. Stone is a breathable material, so needs to be able to let moisture out that has come in. If the walls are plastered with normal plastering, this may well be contributing to the damp, they should be lime plastered as that is breathable and will allow moisture through instead of getting trapped inside the walls.