To not know what to do.

[fancybiccies]

Long story short, we bought a house a year ago. Needed some work, but ultimate plan was to do it up, make some money and move back to near family.
We have bought the house, gutted it and done everything. New kitchens, bathrooms, carpets, decoration, landscape gardens etc.
We had a survey (just regular home buyers survey) when we were buying and everything came back fine. No issues with structural/damp/anything.
We have a buyer and are due to exchange in a week.
They have just paid a surveyor to go over the entire property over the course of 3.5 hours. It was the most comprehensive survey you can buy.
They have come back with so so many things they are saying is wrong.
They say that the garden is sinking and needs digging up and re landscaping, the loft is apparently covered in mold, the garden walls around all 4 sides are twisting and need knocking down and rebuilding, the drains are blocked. They want to knock £50,000 off the purchase price a week before exchange.
Our survey done a year ago shows none of this. Just garden and walls satisfactory, they have moved slightly when settling but this is deemed as old and the property is now 20 years old.
Builder friend says that items in the loft often get covered in mold. The items up there aren’t even ours, I think they’ve been there 20 years. It’s a few old Santa sacks and a box of cuddly toys.
What would you do?

I have just had a survey done on a property I am buying. It was the full works, think it runs to about 92 pages - with photos.
Before I saw the report the surveyor rang on the day just to discuss the initial findings. From the conversation, I could easily have been alarmed as he told me all the problems - or potential problems he found. But on receiving the written report it's all fairly straightforward maintenance stuff, he was just being belts and braces. It's with my solicitor now and she is also taking recommendations from it.

My point is, if I had gone on his initial chat I might have panicked, but a proper reading of the report along with my solicitors experienced reading has reassured me that while there may be some maintenance issues they are in no way insurmountable and not a reason to knock down the price. You should not even consider a lower offer until the report has been written up and been seen by their solicitor at least.

What survey is this lol, I have just done a full survey (cost nowhere near this) and it's true- it turns up all sorts and when you look at it on the paper you do think it seems a lot is wrong BUT in reality (as it sounds like with yours OP) these are minor or median problems that do not affect the usage of the house for any normal person, will be the case in almost all properties of a certain age. You can bet your bottom dollar OP if you gave them 50k off (which is ludicrous) they wouldn't use it to fix nonsense like garden fences.

They are chancers OP I can't stress that enough. For contrast as I say, we just got our survey back, it shows various maintenance issues that need looking at- gutters need a clean, some condensation, high ground levels, a bit of repointing will need doing on the roof. That's surely to be expected in a victorian house. The only thing we did not expect that really was an issue- we sent the vendor the relevant part of the survey explaining what had been found, got two quotes done for the work, took the average and requested from the vendor that we split that cost (was about 2.5k off the agreed selling price). That is how normal people operate. I could sit at home and add up how much to fix every single non perfect issue in the survey and say it comes to 20k but I have seen the house, its 90 years old, I'm not idiot enough to think it will be in perfect condition or that I am entitled for it to be for the sale to go through.

If you want to renegotiate OP ask to see the relevant parts of the survey to see anything graded 2 or 3, tell the buyer they can get several quotes done for the works the survey states are 3 (advisory to be dealt with NOW) to estimate the true cost. I would also get your own quotes.

It sounds a huge pain OP but I ultimately would tell the buyer no, act promptly and get the property back on the market. You don't owe them 50k and the fact that was their original offer is deeply suspect. Do assert yourself

Of course people pull out after a bad survey, but a survey is the very first thing you do, not the last one!

Bollykecks I'd call a subsiding garden real problems!

FizzyGreenWater No, that's true. Although it was several weeks into the process before we got it done and it was maybe another month before we got the results. Thankfully our BIL was our solicitor so we didn't lose that money.

Also I agree with everything @dontgobaconmyheart said!

peach how likely is it that the garden is subsiding when the op has had it landscaped at most a year ago? and the landscaper presumably said nothing and didn't charge more to fix any similar issues etc?

a subsiding garden would be incredibly obvious I would assume, brought up on ops survey a year ago, visible to the naked eye. They didn't mention it at the viewing, still went ahead with buying the house, and yet all of a sudden the garden is subsiding to a tune of 50k?

id be very very surprised if that were true and not a massive over reaction of some slightly boggy grass.

They sound like chancers. Just say no but definitely remove the crap from the loft.

The houses here are renowned for settling. It’s marshy land and the houses have special foundations.
So yes, the garden has settled a couple of inches lower than the house, and the garden walls have twisted and moved slightly, but this was 20 years ago.
The structural survey for the house is fine. Just the garden which obviously doesn’t have foundations like the house would.

I'm not saying the buyers are right to be worried, just that they could well be naive first time buyers who are freaking out about the results of the survey rather than chancers!

peach naïve first time buyers wouldn't leave getting a survey done until a week before exchange would they?

If they were naive first time buyers surely they would have got the survey weeks ago? Because it takes time to find specialist trades to come in and quote for the different bits of work ... oh wait Don't take it personally, it's a game to them.

Yes that’s it. Raft foundations. No mold visible in the loft except apparently on that box of belongings that have probably been up there 20 years. Ive not seen it myself as I’ve not been up there.
Drains are all fine.
Is mold to be expected on soft toys that have been in a cardboard box for 20 years?

Is mold to be expected on soft toys that have been in a cardboard box for 20 years?

Err, yes!!!!

They're not pulling out though, are they? They're trying to gazump, so clearly they do want the house. But they want it at a fire sale price so they can crow over how stupid and desperate you were every time they have people over for the next twenty years.

Presumably you took it off the market for them. One phone call puts it back on. Cheeky so and sos, trying it on.

They’re not pulling out.
They’re still desperate for the property. Just for 50K less to account for the sinking garden and mouldy box in the loft.

They’re still desperate for the property.

How lucky for them that it it still for sale, at the price they've already agreed :)

As soon as husband gets home with a ladder that bloody box is being binned!

Dear Estate Agent/Solicitor, we disagree with the alleged issues raised in the report that the buyer has purchased. The sale price has been agreed and we will not amend it at this late stage. Yours fancy & mr biccies

Big fat no.

If they walk away then you're no worse off than accepting it and not being able to afford to move anyway.

I couldn't agree more with your reply, that would have been mine too.

(with a different name too!)