Artex removal on stud walls

[lampshady]

Our flat purchase has fallen through and we're now looking around again. Sigh!

Seen a lovely house but it's wall to wall and ceiling artex, with artex on stud walls downstairs. This wouldn't necessarily put me off, and Google says it's easily removable, but would it need to be a professional job on the stud walls?

Has anyone removed it themselves before on stud walls? Otherwise the house is in good condition, but it would mean painting etc would be delayed.

If it's a modern stud wall I would think that removing the existing plasterboard and artex and fixing new board would be the easiest way to deal with it.

Do you know when the artex dates from? It used to contain asbestos before the 80s. We has a plasterer in to skim the ceilings rather than attempt removal.

I've asked the estate agent when the house was built and when the artex dates from. If it's pre 80s does that mean it's a professional job?

What constitutes a 'modern' stud wall? The house looks 69s/70s ish but is on a road with 1930s houses so it's hard to date.

Artex applied before the mid 1980s may contain asbestos - low risk asbestos - which is harmless while it is intact. I would ask when some of the work was done in the house to give you an indication of the potential (small) risk. Then if you do go ahead, have the artex tested and take things from there. You have to think of possible resale issues if you don't have asbestos removed because some people just won't want to buy somewhere where there is asbestos present. It could also be a bargaining tool when buying.

I just hate the stuff and artex puts me off full stop!

Yeah, it is vile. The house is detached with a really good size garden though, which makes me a bit more lenient! Our aim would be for the house to be permanent more or less so removing it would take a while but we'd have the time to do it.

I'll see if one of my more capable friends can do a second viewing with me to try and gauge costs.