To reduce the offer

[MizMoonshine]

Buying a house.

Original asking price £190,000. We offered £180,000 after advice from restate agents that it would be accepted as they had been rejecting lower offers.

Avg value in area (for a ready to move into house) between £170,000 - £180,000.

Searches have come back, as well as separate gas and electric inspections. Radon high area (will need testing), needs replumbing and rewiring. We've been quoted £5100 for the electrical whatnots, the gas engineer has told me to expect much for the gas.

Would we be unreasonable to reduce our offer again? And if not, what would be a reasonable amount?

We originally offered less because it needs amfair bit of cosmetic work. There's no floor covering down, there's not enough outlets etc- it was overpriced to start. Now we're looking at a large sum to make it livable.

Okay so just because the report says that the electrics are unsatisfactory doesn't mean we need to be worried about it? I was in a bit of a panic when I got it back and thought it would be something that we need to fix before we could move in.
But if it's something we can do as we go that's less intimidating.

@MizMoonshine

There's no chain, it's a vacant property.

Then I suspect they will pull out the sale op. I’d get looking for another property if I was you.

Also are they condemned? Or not up to current standards?

You knew the house was a bit of a state when you saw it. It’s pretty obvious that there would be more to do so not sure they’ll be keen on accepting a reduced offer

Op you’re posting all over the place. What does the actual wording say?

Maybe you need to speak to whomever it was. A new fuse box is cheap, your electrics don’t need replacing just because they are old. Your boiler doesn’t need to meet current guidelines, because they change annually.

If you don’t understand what’s written instead of jumping to I’m dropping the price, it is prudent to understand what the report says. You shouldn’t be buying a home if you can’t do this.

No, I wouldn’t worry about this - standards change every year, and a fuse board needing replacement and a require although can seem daunting doesn’t mean it needs immediate action.

The only think I would want rectifying is the condemned heaters.

They should have certain certificates to sell. I would expect the sellers to make any issues with these certificates good before exchange. You could choose to leave it for a reduction in price of the costs of achieving these certificates perhaps.

@MizMoonshine

Okay so just because the report says that the electrics are unsatisfactory doesn't mean we need to be worried about it? I was in a bit of a panic when I got it back and thought it would be something that we need to fix before we could move in. But if it's something we can do as we go that's less intimidating.

I think the best course of action would be look at the actual words are in the report. Condemned is a strong word, not up to current standard is different and a suggestion.

My report says mine could benefit from a rewire, 2 electricians said just because it was old it doesn’t need changing.

Slightly off-topic, but have you checked insurance prices with the proximity to the river?

This house may not be at risk but insurance co's sometimes (often?) work on proximity to water rather than more specific likelihood of flood damage.

No I would not reduce the offer because of this and if I were the vendor I would not accept a reduced offer. The survey has brought up things which mainly seem to be nice to haves, not essentials.

To clear it up. We payed for a homebuyers survey, an EICR inspection and a gas safety inspection. The gas fires were condemned on inspection and the boiler was found to not be installed properly. The lack of radiators weren't initially a problem because there were fires.

The EICR stated that the electrics were unsatisfactory and recommended a new fuse board and rewire.

I am considering reducing the offer because, given the work we are now expecting to have to do- which we weren't initially, the price is increasing.

But I'm now less concerned about the electrics as they're not an immediate concern, apparently.

I wasn't aware we could ask them to do something about the fires! What can we reasonably expect from them in this case?

We love the house. I'm not looking to piss off the seller or to get the price knocked down for nothing, just to reflect what we would have to spend to make it livable, which is why I'm asking advice :)

If its unsafe and it won't cos loads you could ask them to make electrics safe and produce a safety certificate?

The only correct price for house is one that is agreed between buyer and seller. Arguing about the need for a reduction based on what may or may not need doing is slightly academic. Offer what you think its worth, and if they don't agree move on and buy something else

@SofiaMichelle the insurance is fine, it's opposite the river so has a view of it, but it's not flooded before, although a corner of the street has. Searches came back fine and I checked with the neighbours too.

I wasn't aware we could ask them to do something about the fires! What can we reasonably expect from them in this case?

I would ask them to be fixed and have a certificate passing them.

Same with the boiler.

That’s very odd. It’s unsafe but only recommends a rewire and new fuse board? I guess you’re not quoting the exact words still op?

With the electrics I would get an inspections, I unsure from your post if they are condemned or just old.

Yep I would go back and reduce offer on the basis of the reports - it's normal/standard practise

You could have presumably seen that the electrics etc were old when you looked round - old fashioned sockets or switches, fuse board etc, and lack of radiators. And surveys often say they recommend a rewire as regulations change all the time.

To me, this survey sounds broadly in line with what you'd have seen when you viewed and therefore it's not really justification for reducing your offer. On the other hand, you are entitled to get cold feet and decide to walk away at any time. If you are genuinely prepared to walk away rather than pay £180k then you can ask for something off, but don't be surprised if the vendors either say no, or are highly pissed off and take all the lightbulbs with them.

At the end of the day it's just a negotiation. If you can't agree a price that both sides find acceptable, there will be no deal. The vendors are under no obligation to agree a lower price, they can always walk just like you can.

@Bluntness100

That’s very odd. It’s unsafe but only recommends a rewire and new fuse board? I guess you’re not quoting the exact words still op?

After you've done a rewire and new fuse box, what else is left to do on house electrics? Nothing odd about that is there?

@MizMoonshine

We just really like the house. It's situated by the river where we often go for walks (not an advantage for everyone, but we've checked for flooding and it's sound). We just had a good feeling about the place. Can see our family there.

How sound is the flooding situation. A friend of mine brought a house 3 years ago near a river that hadn't flooded for over 25 years..... it's flooded twice since she's been there and still hasn't moved back in.

@Symbion

You could have presumably seen that the electrics etc were old when you looked round - old fashioned sockets or switches, fuse board etc, and lack of radiators. And surveys often say they recommend a rewire as regulations change all the time.

To me, this survey sounds broadly in line with what you'd have seen when you viewed and therefore it's not really justification for reducing your offer. On the other hand, you are entitled to get cold feet and decide to walk away at any time. If you are genuinely prepared to walk away rather than pay £180k then you can ask for something off, but don't be surprised if the vendors either say no, or are highly pissed off and take all the lightbulbs with them.

At the end of the day it's just a negotiation. If you can't agree a price that both sides find acceptable, there will be no deal. The vendors are under no obligation to agree a lower price, they can always walk just like you can.

^This

The exact wording of the report is very long and measures safety using codes.
C3 is immediately dangerous - this appears several times on the report.
C2 is potentially dangerous and fills the rest of the report.
This is for the electric inspection. It's serveral pages of work. This is why I haven't given a direct quote.
This leads to a recommendation of a rewire and a new fuse board.

The gas fires are the only things that have been condemned.

After you've done a rewire and new fuse box, what else is left to do on house electrics? Nothing odd about that is there?

You’ve missed the point, if it is not satisfactory it would be “required” not “recommended” .

Op, that’s not what c2 and 3 mean, c1 means danger present.

C2 is potentially dangerous.

C3 is improvement recommended.

C2 doesn’t mean immediately or ever dangerous. It means it could be, as in “potentially” . That doesn’t mean a full rewire. It could just be the Earth.