Conveyancing and surveys

jiggy2 wrote: »

What would your view be on:


The roof slopes to the front and left side and ground floor roofs are covered with an older tile. Many are loose, slipping or broken. I am of the opinion that the roof covering to the front and side and ground floor is approaching a time where it will be more cost effective to replace the whole covering than make many small repairs.


(this is from a recent survey done on a property we are interested in). It is sort of similar to the boiler needing replacing in the OP's case. As a buyer would you renegotiate? As a seller would you say this is just wear and tear?


Thanks

When I bought I only negotiated on surprises. It just doesn't seem like fair play to me to try to beat a price down using survey findings that you already know. For example, my survey came back saying the roof had some minor problems and was nearing the end of it's serviceable life. That's pretty standard text for original roofs on my type of house and I knew it was the original roof when I made my offer. Mine said there was damp in the basement. I'd already seen it. It said the wiring needed looking at, which again I'd already seen. So the question I'd ask is whether you knew the roof was a bit crumby when you made your offer or is this news?

My approach was based on me really loving the property and buying from a seller who clearly didn't really want to sell (neighbours told me after I moved in that many of the many many delays to my purchase were down to my seller having 'wobbles'). If I'd been buying from someone who was desperate to sell, or buying a house with lots of acceptable alternatives I might have behaved less 'ethically'.:)

Whatever you do, I'd get the roof looked at before you commit.

shortcrust wrote: »

When I bought I only negotiated on surprises. It just doesn't seem like fair play to me to try to beat a price down using survey findings that you already know. For example, my survey came back saying the roof had some minor problems and was nearing the end of it's serviceable life. That's pretty standard text for original roofs on my type of house and I knew it was the original roof when I made my offer. Mine said there was damp in the basement. I'd already seen it. It said the wiring needed looking at, which again I'd already seen. So the question I'd ask is whether you knew the roof was a bit crumby when you made your offer or is this news?

My approach was based on me really loving the property and buying from a seller who clearly didn't really want to sell (neighbours told me after I moved in that many of the many many delays to my purchase were down to my seller having 'wobbles'). If I'd been buying from someone who was desperate to sell, or buying a house with lots of acceptable alternatives I might have behaved less 'ethically'.:)

Whatever you do, I'd get the roof looked at before you commit.

thanks all for responding. We will get a roofer in.


Did I know the roof was crumbly - the answer would be no (probably very naïve of us - but most of the time at the viewings was spent inside and therefore hadn't picked up that there were tiles missing / broken / slipped or that the roof could be nearing end of its useful life - not that I would know what to look out for in any case)