Would you buy house that needs new roof?

[sellotape12]

I’m dragging my sorry ass here again. We have had so many ups and downs I just don’t know how much longer I can cope with trying to sell + buy.

The latest is, the house we’re meant to be buying is not watertight. We thought we were buying a structurally sound house with just old fashioned decor. Our surveyor didn’t pick this up as he obviously didn’t go onto the roof. But we sent a specialist surveyor round today who found that the roof is “done” and the house is leaking. He also noted that the recent applied coving and paint insides the rooms is surely covering up the yellow water stains.

I don’t love this house. It just made head sense: near to a great school, amenities and postcode snobbery. But my heart has never been in it. What to do :(

What do you mean 'done'?

Surely "done" means the roof is at the end of its lifetime.

I would get a quote for the roof and reduce my offer accordingly.

Yes but only if the price was reflective of it - it is not cheap getting a new roof. You are going to be looking at £15k ish to get it in decent slate and to building regs.

It is also hassle. And it will take a while to get a decent contractor to bid and become free. So I would want some more off for the hassle factor.

sellotape12 I can send you by PM an illustrative quote which DOES conform to building regs if you like so you can get quotes against that.

What's putting you off pulling out? Is it just the hassle of having to start searching again? It's one thing getting the vendor to reduce the price but have you actually got the money to do the roof?

We did, ours was a dorma bungalow with incredibly high pitched roof and 2 flat dormas in it. Both leaked. Cost around 12k to full building regs and had a few extras.

It was about a week long of a job, and very unintrusive.

Yes, by done he meant at the end of its lifetime. All the tiles and flashing are broken and damaged.

The house also needs a new kitchen, windows, flooring, moving boiler, garden landscaping and 2 walls knocking down. This we budgeted for: the roof we did not.

So we can go back and renegotiate. But we agreed a price before Brexit and the other thing that is clawing at my instincts is that it's not worth that figure anymore (most houses in three are are renegotiating 1.5% off).

Not sure the agent will knock money off for a market change AND a roof.

Kirin: only things putting me off pulling out are time, money spent and emotional hassle. Our amazing solicitor said she will waive her fee, but we have also spent £900 on valuation surveys.

......having said that, I guess losing £900 is nothing if you're in a house you don't love.

But do the timbers need replacing? If it's been leaking a while some of them might not be sound.
Ime having the tiles done and a nice new membrane put in is relatively straightforward and predictable cost-wise but anything below that might not be.

Oh god Sellotape, it sounds like a huge financial drain. As you know I'm just about to complete and I would hate having to go through the dreaded process again but I bet you'll find buying that place more of a hassle long term than searching again.

If I loved the house and it made financial sense then yes.

Definitely go back and offer less the cost of the roof.

Better to be £900 down than thousands in a house you don't love.

Anything you have already spent is a sunk cost and you should not even consider it in your decisions making. Get your head on not your heart.

If the house is in a great location and is going to work for you, and you can get it for the right price to take into account the work - then go for it. But it is starting to sound like this isn't really right for you. That amount of work will put off loads of people, if you don't buy this they are not in a strong position to get someone else quickly.

Get your hard nosed negotiating hat on and ask for £20k off, settle for £15 if you do actually want this house.

The roof will cost £15k - the £900 you've spent already doesn't even figure

True.
At this stage it's more than £15k I'd want off though. That will cover the roof, but not the fall in market value that has inevitably come about since Brexit.

I know in my heart the house is not worth what we offered now. Just not sure if the agent will negotiate on 2 different reasons.

Yeah then go to them and say 'increasingly nervous, survey found loads of problems, market in the shit, revised offer price of [x]"

I just sent you a PM.

How old is it?

Is it a simple pitched roof, or does it have hips, dormers, ornamental tiles?

Is it slate or tile?

Detached? Bungalow?

Does your specialist surveyor say the roof timbers are rotten?

I would buy any house if it was priced right.

more detail is needed on the type of roof, but most roofing is not a deal breaker.

Thanks Miaow. The roof guys said the house clearly hasn't been maintained at all in 25 years, and said with a house like that, you're bound to find even more faults. I think we're going to pull out. All my instincts are on fire.
Please cross your fingers for me that we find something else we can afford that's nicer!* We're seven months in :(

We bought a house knowing the roof was in a bad way and it needed money throwing at it. But we knew we could get it at a price that allowed us to do the NOW stuff straightaway and the SOON stuff in a few years whilst adding value. Having been in the neighbours houses we definitely bought the tired house and we're turning it into the best house :) And most importantly a home we love.
If you can't say that and are prepared to walk away, tell the EA that the figures don't stack up above X price, you don't want to muck anyone about and so you're pulling out.
That at least gives them the option to think about it and they might come back to you. But if you've mentally detached you're in a good position.