Underpinning - how much will it cost?

[RandomMess]

Drains have leaked over years, back wall may need underpinning in the future.

How do I find out how much this would cost?

Underpinning is usually an insurance job - check your buildings insurance to see what the excess is (likely to be £1000 or more).

If it's just one wall, this would be a lot cheaper than the whole house and might just involve strengthening the foundations and perhaps installing wall ties. If the house needs redecorating too then this would be factored into the quote.

Whole house underpinning can be costly (£30k+ though depends on size of house and severity of problem).

Not sure if it is good idea to bring this to the insurance company's attention yet though, as they will want to inspect and assess to see how much the wall is moving over the course of at least a year and, of course, it will cause your premiums to go up and possibly make it difficult to change insurance company. Also, you would have to disclose to a future buyer. Perhaps get a builder to come and view it and see what they think first.

It was a house we were considering buying, DH has said a big fat NO

I agree absolutely with your DH. Don't touch it with a bargepole. What is the point of buying a house with such a problem. And these things sometimes end up costing lots more than initial estimates.

Dream home in a dream location, I do think it may end up going to auction!!!