What to do, looking at house buy sub station is behind it

[portico]

Hi

Looking to buy a house walking distance from school, in a much sought after catchment. It is a corner plot with a side garden15 feet from house wall to pavement. Back garden is about 30 feets, and walked from side garden, behind back garden is a garage. Behind garage is the sub station. My questions:

1. Are there health issues with being next to a sub station..
2. Vendor does not know about access rights and restrictive covenants, or may be avoiding telling us - who knows. I wonder if cables would run under our garden or pavement. How can I find out, Land Registry, surveyor, solicitor or electricity company.
3. What sort of way can I check without asking the vendor, or do I need to ask surveyor or solicitor.

All help appreciated.

Highly unlikely the sub station is on the property's plot, or do you think it is?

We are all near cables in our homes, in other buildings and wherever we go outside.

There is no evidence of sub stations being harmful to health, unless you read scaremongering pseudo scientific websites, etc. Your mobile phone's electro magnetic field is potentially more of an issue.

I've rejected an otherwise lovely house because of a sub station. My cousin grew up next to one and she developed a brain tumour as a child.

Now I'm not stupid and I know that doesn't prove there is any connection between the two events at all (she also has two sisters who never had any problems). But for me it wasn't worth the infinitesimally small risk and I was worried about the resale.

order up office copy entries from the land registry for a couple of pounds - it should have full details of any rights of way over your land for the purpose of accessing / repairing the sub station. Are you sayiing that there is no other access to it from behind the garage, so your property is the sole access? if so, that and resale issues (see post above) would mean that for me, the property would have to be competitively priced. Just because current owner hasn't had any issues over the years doesn't mean that the entire thing isn't going to need extensive and intrusive work at some point during your period of ownership

We have put in an offer to buy a house adjacent to a substation, which is visually hidden from the house behind a garage. The substation has its own access to the pavement. I need to check access rights and any covenants restricting what we can do with the property.

Your solicitor should be doing this as part of the searches. If the house is registered then the title register should detail anything affecting the property and the searches should include the electricity distribution company in the area who should supply details.

This comes up quite often. No proven health risk, the efield from whatever you are using to access this website is stronger. Read sense about science.

Issues

• noise?
• access and wayleaves
• buyer perception for future sales. Sorry for the person with a lost relative, but some people are ignorant and cannot assess risks.

My cousin grew up next to one and she developed a brain tumour as a child.

My friends dad died of a brain tumor and they didn't live anywhere near a sub station.

Sub stations are like grave yards near by , no actual problem but it would put people off.
On the plus side you'll get it for a better price and less likely to get gazumped.

A friend of mine and her dh are doctors. Their house backs onto a substation. I was surprised they had bought it. Another friend (a GP) said she'd NEVER but near a substation. I definitely wouldn't buy it a) because of potential health risks b) because of substation potentially affecting resale. Honestly just don't do it.

Our house adjoins a substation. Surveyor said no risk.

I would be more concerned about the noise, people breaking in through your garden to strealmcopper etc

No I wouldn't buy this house. Whether or not there are health risks is unproven. But why buy a house with something that would be a big no-no for buyers when you come to sell.

"why buy a house with something that would be a big no-no for buyers when you come to sell."
Because it'll be a big no no for buyers when you buy as well hence you'll pay 50k less to buy and get 50k less when you sell. And pay less interest on your smaller mortgage in the mean time!

What we "know" and what we are "told" over the years changes. Cigarettes, Asbestos, Diesel fuel, Primodos etc etc. It's up to you to decide.

I imagine it would cost the Government too much money to suddenly declare it was unsafe.

I wouldn't do it but people do do different things. Some people bought houses near the cliff edge that have now fallen in to the sea.

yes, but we can learn some basic science and read up on it from reputable organisations.

anyone really convinced that efields are dangerous would not be on the net - no electricity in the house, never mind no wireless devices.

I think the result of the discussion is that humans are not rational, so you can do quite well if you're aware of these little biases people have.
You'd be better checking the air pollution and road safety levels and where the nearest fresh fruit shop is if you want to follow the established science.