Buying a fire damaged house

[Cucumberscarecrow]

There's a house round the corner from me on the market. It had a major fire last year which started in the attic and burned the roof off. Thankfully no one was injured.

The house has been extensively renovated and redecorated since the fire and was put on the market looking absolutely pristine early this year. It has however had two sales fall through at advanced stages so I'm wondering whether the survey could be showing up some damage to the structure.

It's a lovely Edwardian property and they have managed to retain most of the period features but I'm worried there may be latent damage.

[worldgonecrazy]

You could try asking the estate agents if you are seriously interested. And then get a full survey yourself. The estate agents may tell you enough to know whether it's a viable option or not.

A long time ago, we looked at a house with some structural problems, and the estate agents did tell us what had been found in a previous report completed by a buyer who had pulled out, so you might get lucky.

[Cucumberscarecrow]

I don't trust any these particular estate agents but I agree it's worth asking the question. I'm not sure if I'm serious about the property. I love it and it's my dream house on a road where houses rarely come up for sale but our house isn't even on the market yet and needs painting etc so I don't think we realistically have a chance. I guess there's nothing to lose in asking the agent though.

[CointreauVersial]

I would definitely ask the EA why the previous ones fell through. If it is survey related they know you'll find out eventually.

[Scousadelic]

I think if an agent has knowledge of any structural problem they are supposed to tell you. It is worth asking even if you are not sure if the answer can be trusted

[Cucumberscarecrow]

Thank you.

I guess I am also wondering whether anyone knows if fires can cause irreparable structural damage to unseen parts of the house. As far as I know, only the upper parts burned but could the heat have damaged foundations, for example?