Would you buy a house like this?

[Pigletin]

Posting in AIBU for traffic.

We have found our dream house in terms of budget, space, condition and location. The structural survey returned a couple of major things that concerned us:

• Spray foam insulation on the roof which will cause a huge expense and potentially means replacing the roof (assuming the bank will give us a mortgage due to the type of insulation). We are prepared to split the cost of a new roof with the sellers and they are willing to do the work.
• My husbands’ bigger worry is that it’s a timber frame house with an outer skin of bricks. The surveyor has no way of ascertaining the condition of the frame as it’s all hidden. The overall condition looks good from what you can actually see and the sellers seem to have taken good care of it in the 4 years since they’ve lived there. The house is 30 years old and we have read online that the usual span of life of these types of houses are 50-60 years.

This will be our forever house but is also an investment for our kids for when we are gone. We can potentially move out of the UK when we retire or downsize and would want the house to hold or appreciate in value (London) when sold. From what we read online it’s questionable whether this can happen with a timber frame house in another 20-30 years and people might be reluctant to buy it due to the above (essentially having similar concerns to ours). I know timber framed houses are the norm in many countries but they are built differently to the ones in the UK and there are disadvantages to the building process here. The reality is if we walk away and look elsewhere we will end up with a smaller house in a less ideal location.

Would you buy a house like this? Would the timber frame put you off considering we want it to keep or grow its value?

YABU - Stop worrying, buy your dream house.
YANBU - Walk away.

If you are worrying about buying it, your potential buyers will worry too, especially in 20+ years time.
I wouldn’t buy it.

The house is 30 years old and we have read online that the usual span of life of these types of houses are 50-60 years.

So its got max 30 yrs left, and you want it forever AND to be an investment for the kids? Are you planning on dying next year? The math doesn't math

I think if you loved everything else about it and just wanted it for a happy life, I’d buy it. But with that kind of construction I’d very much doubt it would be a good investment unless the value of the plot will grow in value or you have the funds to rebuild it in the future.

As you have noted, the roof probably means most lenders won’t touch it at the moment, it may well be non standard construction even once the roof is sorted and I absolutely dread to think what that type of insulation will have done to a timber frame (I’d be very worried that it would be rotten because of the lack of ventilation or severely weakened because of the additional weight). If the surveyor can’t reassure you it’s a massive gamble.

There are so many timber framed houses in the UK there is no chance at a point in time they will be demolished and rebuilt.

Where does this idea even come from? I used to have one and the insulation was excellent and our fuel bills very small.

I think it all depends.

Is it a recognised building method followed by a reputable builder with all building regs sign offs?

Or a DIY project?

I know there are some very sought after developments in SE London with post war non standard construction.

But the roof situation suggests it has been ‘got at’, and gif knows what else they might have done. Has it got an electrical certificate?

Lenders are very pernickity about non standard construction

The roof would make me walk away, timber frame I wouldn’t be concerned about, it’s pretty standard these days

Timber frame is completely normal, no idea why you are worried about it.

Spray foam really depends on how it's been used and for what. We used it on a flat roof which was perfect for...but if they have put it in an apex roof and not provided ventilation then it creates a sweat box so that is question to go back with.

what type of timber frame are you talking about that has such a short lifespan? Timber frames are pretty standard in many countries and increasingly common here.

roof is as you described - seems you are fully aware of what you are taking on and what needs doing so if you are happy with that (and can get a mortgage) then it’s a moot point.

Many of them built in the 1500's!

There are other houses. This one would be a firm no for me.

Check with your mortgage provider, there has been recent talk on the news that mortgages will not be available for houses which have spray roof insulation.

This baffles me too. Timber frame is a pretty established method of construction used for centuries. I think 50 year lifespan is a myth, quite likely perpetrated by anti-newbuild folks. It's certainly doesn't appear in any official sources.
My grandparents bought a new build property in 1964 and were told that it will fall apart within 30 years due to construction methods. They still live in it today and it didn't need much more than a bit of remedial work on a roof.

What sort of age of house? is it non-standard construction, as in hard to mortgage or just a timber frame? Which as a pp commented isn’t that unusual. If it’s just the roof and you’re going half’s that sounds completely sortable. However, the fact you say anything else might be smaller or in a worse area makes me think there might be more longer term value concerns otherwise why would it be an outlier?

There are many different types of timber frame. The ones that are hundreds of years old you are thinking about use. big thick oak beams for example. A modern timber frame can equally be softwood “2x4’s” nailed together and covered in plasterboard. This is how the majority of American homes are built for example. So of all depends on the specifics.

We don’t know if the 50-60 year life span is correct, it is just what we read online. We want is our forever house but when we die we want the house to have kept its value and essentially mean that for us it’s also an investment for the kids (for after we die).

There many types of timber framed houses but this one has a much thinner frame than the thick ones built a LONG time ago. This is much more modern construction so it’s not yet known how long it will last.

as someone mentioned earlier, if it does have a lifespan, then 20yrs down the line, that life span is markedly shorter. Making it a risky investment for me.

The property is built using traditional materials and techniques.
The external walls of the property are of timber frame construction, with an outer leaf of brick finish.
The roof is of pitched construction with a tiled covering.
The ground floor is built of concrete beam and block construction. The upper floor is built of suspended
timber construction.

This is what the survey says. I have just re-read it and it sounds like it is not a non-standard construction.

Do they bulldoze over the majority of American homes and rebuild them every 50 years?

The house is 30 years old and the report says that it is built using traditional methods and materials which makes me think it is not a non-standard construction.

You make a good point about the house being an outlier. It is indeed an outlier and I’m also wondering why the vendors are also selling after only living there for 4 years. They have put a lot of money into the house and it all appears to me that they intended this to be a long term home, it for some reason they are selling (and staying in the area). So yes I have these concerns as well but not sure if they are well founded or just me not understanding the area and market well.

American houses are built with much thicker timber frames and the majority of the frame is exposed so you can actually spot any issues and remediate quickly. American houses (and Swedish houses too for that matter) are built completely different. Also if a house in the U.S. gets too old and is not well maintained it’s much easier to bulldoze and much cheaper to rebuild than a house in the U.K. Totally different situations and not sure the comparison is useful.

I was around 30 ish years ago when the phrase "timber framed" changed to "brick and timber" We were looking at houses then and looked at a lot of new and newish brick and timber houses, expensive ones, and I have to say, I wasn't impressed. In the end we went for a 1 year old brick construction house which I still live in. Its my impression that brick and timber house construction techniques have moved on and improved considerably in 30 years but I still wouldn't consider a 30ish YO one. I'd think really hard about the foam in the roof. do you know what a worst case cost would be and will the sellers just knock that off the cost of the house or will they get it done before you move in? What will happen if the work costs go up because of what they find?

I have no idea how American houses are built. I am going by the PP's comment who suggests they are built using 2x4s. You seem to have your mind made up, not sure how much point there is to this thread.

Is it mortgagable if it is non standard construction? The two issues would be a firm no for me as I’d imagine it would be very hard to sell particularly if the market wasn’t as hot as it is now.

It's not a forever home if it'll only last 50/6" years and is already 30 years old.

Banks don't like lending on timber houses.

I'd want proper bricks and mortar