When the property you're buying needs work doing

[MemoriesOfAnotherFuture]

Property I am buying (sold stc) has damp - I knew about one patch as is visible to naked eye but further investigation by damp investigator has found more in other rooms. Apparently nothing sinister or overly urgent and to be expected in property this age (built 1910). Have been quoted £1500 to knock off plaster, put in damp membrane and re-plaster ready for decoration. How do I go about negotiating this with vendor? I sent an enquiry to solicitor but she said negotiate through estate agent. No idea where to start, what is reasonable/the 'done' thing! Full amount of part? Knocked off sale price or paid another way? Expect work to be done before I move in/exchange (apparently a three day job) or once I've moved in? Any advice appreciated!

If there was damp apparent when you viewed then I think trying to reduce the agreed sale price now is a bit much tbh.

You can't expect the vendor to get the work done before exchange as it will be messy and disruptive - and would you pay for it when they're not legally obliged to sell it to you until you have exchanged?

Wait until you've moved in.

Btw - what kind of damp is it and is it really a membrane that will be fitted in which case what is being done to stop whatever is making it wet? If it's a chemical damp course that won't fix the actual problem.

As your solicitor says, ask the Estate Agent to speak to the vendor. This is what you pay them for.

I bought a 1901 property with a pretty major damp problem. Based on the surveyors report I got a few quotes and then asked for the upper estimate off the asking price. The sellers agreed, probably because they knew the issue would only come up again at survey if they didn’t. I personally wouldn’t have trusted them to do it properly and we were moving out of rented so didn’t want to risk any delays to completion if the work wasn’t done in a timely manner. But it’s up to you to negotiate for however you’d prefer the issue to be resolved.

Well you can ask for the 1.5k off but don’t expect them to roll over on it, you knew it had damp.

I wouldn’t ask them to have the work done, I’d want to supervise myself (also if I was your seller I’d think that was taking the piss something chronic..)

Just contact the EA and say you’ve had the survey back and need to adjust the price to account for the damp works - it will go from there.

There was one patch of damp apparent in the corridor near the back door, I asked the vendor about it at the time. It has caused discolouration to the paint on the wall so is visible. However, the damp investigator has also found two patches in the front bedroom, one patch in the back bedroom and two patches in the living room!

It is the 'beginnings of rising damp' and the membrane will apparently make it 'bone dry' and has a 50 year guarantee.

The current vendor has only lived there two years and has painted in that time so it is quite fresh so I wasn't really banking on even decorating. The damp proofing will mean plaster removed, membrane applied then re-plastering so will then require decoration. I would like the cost of the damp proofing paid as I will then also need to pay for redecoration on top of that.

Thanks for the advice about having the works done once I've moved in so that I can supervise. And also so that it doesn't hold things up further. I am still living with my ex-h with out 4yo DD in our marital home and am desperate to be out.

With *our 4yo DD (not with out DD)

I'd go through the EA and offer the price less the cost of repair including decoration. If they say no, knock of the redecoration costs (on the basis you'd likely redecorate to your own tastes anyway

Is it a bungalow? Highly, highly unlikely to have rising damp in a bedroom if it isn't. In fact I doubt it's rising damp at all - more likely dodgy guttering or an issue with pointing or the brickwork. Are the affected walls internal or external? Where are the chimney stacks of internal?

Sorry but rising damp is a myth. Did you get a damp 'surveyor' in for free that quotes for them to do the work?

Get an independent specialist in. It's one of the biggest ratchets out there in my opinion. Also a house of that age needs to breathe, you could end up causing damp with the works you do.

I always think this is a bit cheeky really. One 'reserves' the property by offering the best price and once all the other buyers have gone away and found other properties, one starts the 'real' negotiation based on faults found at survey.

An old house is just that, an old house. If you wanted something perfect, buy a new build.

I agree with pp, rising damp is a myth.
Find out where the water is coming from and then get that fixed.
As others have said don’t use a known company who will give you the quote “free” as long as you use them.
Old houses don’t need artificial membranes.

I think you can negotiate post results of the surveys.
Don't forget once the plaster is knocked off you will have an area that needs decorating too

@memories you are completely entitled to ask for a reduction and should put this to the vendors estate agent. You can only tell so much from looking at a property, that's why we have surveys & specialist reports done. You knew it had damp but not this extensive/disruptive & don't have to swallow it I would advise making sure the quote is realistic, maybe see if you can get a few more for free and make sure you provide the EA with the information. This is a completely legitimate reason to ask for a reduction in price. The vendor may say no. Then you can decide if you want to proceed or not.

It isn't a bungalow, it is a downstairs flat (Tyneside flat) so the bedrooms are downstairs - all on one level. The original homebuyers survey picked up on the damp patch the is visible and also mentioned the possibility of further damp. I then instructed an independent specialist who was recommended by the estate agent to look in more depth at the damp and the timbers. He went to the property with a moisture reader (?), then vendor was present.

Thanks for all the help and advice so far.

The damp is to internal walls.

The estimate for all the work sounds cheap so make sure you get a fixed quote before going ahead.

The damp could be anything from blocked gutters to cracked sewers so £1500 might only sort the damp course but not the root cause. I would negotiate. We had to when a survey indicated a roof with holes in it. We wanted £5k off the price and eventually settled with £3k off the original offer.

If it makes any difference, the price it’s currently under is £2050 over what the original asking price was. So even with a £1500 reduction for the work, it would be more than the asking price. A friend is also buying a house and had an offer at 10k under asking accepted, and so didn’t feel she could then ask for more off for structural work that came back in the survey.

How on earth do I know who to trust? Or who can find out the truth about the damp? I thought that’s what this gentleman was doing- looking into the damp and telling me what needs doing. He was recommended by the estate agent. People on the thread are saying he could be lying or could have missed what the actual problem is. I don’t have anyone in my family who would know anything about this. I presumed he was a professional. Who can I get to look at it and tell me what to do?!

Came on to add rising damp is a load of bollocks. Do you see rising damp on bridges that cross water? No. If your damp 'expert' is also quoting to do the job then they are selling the damp myth. Anyway you ask the vendors and they may or may not come to the party and drop their price by 1.5k.

You need to get your own surveyor, not someone recommended by the estate agent as they're not likely to be impartial.

Tell your surveyor what you have found and advise them to pay particular attention to this issue.

It's far better to invest in a top notch survey and discover faults now, so that you can renegotiate now, than to find you've bought a lemon.

All you can do is get two or three opinions/quotes.
Most houses have a damp course that stops the damp from rising up the wall. Damp inside can be caused by the soil on the outside being too high and allowing moisture to get above the damp course. Or it could be a broken gutter. a broken pipe, rubble in the cavity wall, poor ventilation, old crumbling mortar, all sorts of things. Luckily most of them won’t cost too much to fix, although you will need to redecorate afterwards. A cracked sewer would be a bit more costly.
Ask around at work, find someone who has had an extension or some other building work done recently, and they are pleased with the result, Get the builder’s phone no. Ask for a second opinion/ quote.
And definitely ask for a reduction on the price to cover the work. The worse the vendor can do is say no. Most will meet you half way at the least. Good luck.

Ask for the money off, but ask your solicitor to do it as a retention in completion (so you get your money back from your seller), so as not to affect anyone’s deposit/mortgage, least of all yours.

Also expect your seller to feel a bit pissed off at being asked.
We’ve been asked for a similar amount off for a similar problem and I feel our buyer should have kept an emergency fund for this sort of thing. (I’m very grumpy though because I kept a huge emergency fund and our inward purchase needs significantly more than even that!)