Help! Lots of 3s on Homebuyer's report

[P0ndLife]

Posting in search of any reassurance!

We're (hopefully) moving to a house... midterrace 50's built ex-council (oh the glamour).
I was expecting lots of "it's old/outdated/tired" but got quite a lot of 3 "urgent work needed".
Any ideas on how "urgent" these would be??

Roof:
The roof covering requires an overhaul... repairs to ridge tile benchings, replacement of laminated/porous tiles. Repairs should be carried out to ensure the roof remains watertight...
...original paper lining to underside which has deteriorated. Whilst this can be accepted regular exterior and interior inspection should be undertaken to check for any further sign of dampness. Any necessary repair will need to be undertaken on a timely basis.

this doesn't seem too bad? Roof is identical to the rest of the road.

Walls:
Some repairs are required... repointing of perished mortar work.
The rendered wall surface ... minor cracking, patched sections and loss of key... due to shrinkage and general deterioration of the render material. As a result penetrating dampness was noted to external walls particularly to the first floor.
Properties of this age are risk of cavity wall tie failure. Horizontal cracking was noted ... however unable to confirm if failure has occured. The only way is... a specialist borescope inspection or... remove bricks.

Am worried by the penetrating damp... how much does re-rendering one wall cost??? Don't know what cavity wall failure is

Windows:
... seals to some double glazed units have failed causing misting on the glass. It is recommended the units are checked and replaced.

replaced immediately?

Outside doors:
Defects include decay to timber surrounds and repairs are now required.

NOW??

Floors:
Mostly... minor spring... no repairs needed at present.
However.. extensive dampness was noted within bathroom due to defective shower... caused spring to adjacent floor... recommend a competent builder inspects and replaces timbers beneath the shower and adjacent areas

This is my big worry - is this expensive/disruptive? Can a builder even check for this pre-sale, wouldn't you have to pull out the shower?
Electricity:
A considerable number of defects and deficiencies were noted to the electrical installation. It is likely that that significant repairs will be required, if not complete replacement. You should arrange... a NICEIC registered specialist to carry our full investigation prior to contact exchange.

Rewiring? Was not expecting to do this type of work AT ALL

Water/heating:
plumbing defects... including corroded/stained pipes/joints. Parts of the heating system are dated and should be regarded as reaching the end of their useful life...defects to the heating system including corroded radiators.

The boiler is a 4 year old combi. If there is corrosion can I just do a anti-corrosion flush?

Basically... would you buy this house?
Any advice much appreciated!

I wrote a long reply but the web site completely lost it but basically call the surveyor and they will take you through it.

Sounds like a poorly maintained damp house...

I bought a late 50s/early 60s council and have had some similar issues.

Electrics updated.
Bathroom floor rotted from leaking toilet.
Double glazing failed in many units (I haven't fixed yet)
Timber around door (I have had it treated)

But I didn't have roof or damp issues.

Do get an electrics survey.

Do call your surveyor and get him to walk you they the report and give you an indication of what are real issues.

Similar here. Roof will probably be ok. Our lining paper is wreaked and even have a broken tile now. But an emergency repair means it stays watertight. Will hold off anythign more until a loft extension. Worth having a look for any leaks though.

Electrics will need a re-wire if not done in the last 20 years. new residual current trip switches are a good idea anyway.

Our windows are all misted. Need replacing but not done yet. They don't let water into the house so are OK!

We put in heating, but 5 years later the bloody radiators are rusting! part of life I'm afraid.

If you love the house:

Get an electrician to quote for rewiring and ask for that to be taken into account in the purchase price when you make an offer.

Ditto a roofer and a timber specialist.

If you buy it, try to get all of the above done before you move in, because all if it is incredibly messy and disruptive to fix. Your mortgage company if you have one will likely insist on the roofing being done at least, possibly the timber/damp work too.

(I learned all this the hard way, having done none of the above and blithely bought somewhere that was falling down! Skint now...)

Meant to add that your plumbing, door frame and windows situations sound less urgent so you could probably live with them for a bit.

Personally I would be quite worried about that unless I had a fair bit of cash to spend. The windows and doors wouldn't bother me but the wall ties, roof and render could be expensive, not to mention the electrical work and associated costs for replastering etc. Having said that, sometimes surveyors can be over cautious on electrical and heating stuff, so you might find it isn't all that bad.

I would get electrics and heating checked though

Thanks for all the replies!

Spoke to the surveyor today.. was very guarded and not so helpful.
Slight positive re the electrics as she said she saw a "old fuse box" and therefore recommended a electrics survey. Will get this done and hope they are just old but safe.

I'm going to get a builder as well to check the render. I'm hoping he'll be able to tell me about the floor under the shower too (but I suppose you never know if there is rot till you rip it out?)

Would anyone try to knock money off for these things or do they come under "sold as seen"

Many thanks, I feel so clueless with this stuff!

In the world of house buying you can try to knock money off for whatever you like, just try to be convincing.
The surveyor should have put down a valuation of the house in its current condition, so just tell them you can't get a mortgage unless they drop to that.
If you can't afford the work them walk away.
Just don't rush into it!