damp and timber report?!

[flamingofridays]

hi everyone,

we are currently selling our house, survey came back ok but the buyers mortgage lender has put a 2 grand retention on the mortgage until they get a damp and timber survey done.

They are going to do this.

I am a bit worried about what this might uncover, however there is not even a tiny bit of damp in our house, no wet walls, no visible mould. Is it possible it could still be damp?

With regards to timber, obviously floorboards etc but will they start ripping up the carpets etc? I really don't want them to do this. We have 1 squeaky floorboard in the whole house and that's about 100 years newer than the rest of them as it was replaced when the prev owners put a new bath in.

The only visible timber would be below the kitchen floor in the cellar, and 2 beams in the attic room. Could this be the cause of the concern?

is it possible they haven't actually seen any problems as such and are doing this because its an old house? (built 1899)

Any advise will be much appreciated as i'm terrified the buyers will find horrendous problems, pull out, we will lose our new house and be stuck in a damp woodworm filled house forever more!

anyone? :)

Did they give any indication why they were doing it?

My mortgage lender did the same due to evidence of woodworm (turned out to have been treated) and possible damp from the chimney stack. However the only damp came from some blocked guttering which has now been fixed.

Presumably their damp meter just scored high when they tested. The damp and timber report is more thorough but they won't rip up carpets - any covered floors will just be given 'area could not be inspected thoroughly due to carpet' or similar.

No not at all. No comment on any damp or evidence of woodworm just a request for a survey.

Only wood in the house that can be seen is below kitchen floor visible from cellar, and two beams in the loft room. No evidence of woodworm to my untrained eye.

Also no damp that i am aware of. Been touching all the walls like a crazy person ever since but still not come across anything wet!

Ask to see a copy of the valuation report. It should tell you why the damp and timber has been requested.

Ive seen it. It doesn't. It mentions historical movement (which we knew about) and the notes just say a damp/timber survey has been requested. It doesnt mention any damp or timber issues or concerns anywhere else. Just literally a box ticked saying they need one. Im a bit baffled tbh!

We had this happen, our buyers had an 8 grand retention put on and wanted to get a free damp surveyor round, after some googling we realised that this is a very bad idea as most free surveys are from salesmen who will say you have damp to get the work.
So we paid for an independent surveyor, cost about £240 and worth every penny. He did a full report - there was no damp as we suspected and the bank dropped the retention 👍

Thanks spicy yes we've gone with an independent one too. Hoping the result will be the same as yours!

How did it go? Hope it's all sorted for you 👍

hi spicy

it went ok, they found a damp wall to the front of the house (its about 3 inches square that's apparently damp apparently caused by a leaking drainpipe cant say ive ever noticed and one of the beams in the cellar has wet rot where the beam meets the wall.

I am a bit gutted, had absolutely no idea! Looks like we will have to spend a bit of cash to get it right. I asked the surveyor how much I was looking at he said about a grand give or take. Not the end of the world, but also not great!

also, the buyers arranged the survey, they told me it was someone independent. It was not, it was a company who also carry out the work. They are qualified to do the survey etc but obviously they want the work out of it. I think I have to get a second opinion now!

if the work does in fact need doing (which to be fair the buyers will probably want!) I will have to get a few quotes.

Definitely arrange your own survey. I wouldn't listen to any surveyor from a company especially as they will think it's a done deal if you have to do the work to sell.

Good luck 👍👍👍

spicy I have got the physical report back and they have advised we need do damp proof the whole front wall because of the tiny damp patch! WTF.

I have arranged another survey and also another damp company to give a second opinion!

flamingo I'd definitely get someone independent to look at it, it's like anything - if I got a double glazing company to look at my windows I'm sure they'd tell me the whole lot need replacing!

yes exactly! they told me initially it was someone independent and when they arrived it was obvious they were a damp proofing company.

Why don't you just take some money off the price of house instead of getting other quotes/work done?

because their mortgage company has put a retention of £2000 on their mortgage, so they would have to offer us £2000 less than what we have agreed, so we'd be better off paying the £900 odd that we've been quoted for the work and getting it done.

without getting the work done the mortgage company wont take the retention off.

But if you need damp proofing/replastering wont that exceed £2k?
Or was that all included in £900 estimate?

no the quote they have handily provided with their survey is for just over £900

If it's a leaking drainpipe then damp proofing will not do anything. You need to fix the drain pipe and perhaps get a dehumidifier in, but the wall will dry out in time.

I'd get someone who knows about damp in period houses...there are lots out there if you Google them. I wouldn't use a damp proof company.

I agree teacher i dont think the front of the house needs damp proofing at all. I imagine its pretty cheap to fix a small leak in a drain pipe!

Yes i will look for someone!

The damp proofing industry is one big scam.

Drilling holes and injecting fluid into Victorian walls is likely to do damage and won’t affect damp.

Get the drain pipe sorted obviously but I would refuse to go down the damp proof course route.

Do some research and talk to your buyer.

scabby can i refuse though realistically? They have sent the report to their mortgage company now.. so if i refuse they could equally refuse to take off the retention?

I agree that it will probably do more harm than good..

You can refuse the works- you don’t have to drop the price, that’s up to you.

I had a similar issue when selling my Victorian terrace, I spoke to the buyer and gave him all the information I had researched. He bought at the original price agreed. It’s a risk I guess?

Also the house I bought had a 2000ish retention for the same thing, we paid for the report because we had to, the mortgage company retained the money but we could still go ahead with the mortgage. I’ve repaired the roof and replaced the leaky guttering, no way will I be going ahead with damp proof injections. The walls are drying out now.

You can predict what the report will recommend- it’s such a waste of time!

I would get the drain pipe fixed. Old properties always show ‘damp’ on those meters that they use. Solid brick walls were designed to breathe- they do let moisture in but then it dries out again naturally. You only get real problems when there is lack of ventilation or modern plastic based paints trapping in moisture etc etc

www.standardheritage.uk/technical/measuring-damp/

scabby but if the mortgage company dont release the extra funds doesnt that mean the buyer has to find that extra 2 grand in cash? I know they dont have that. (I have never sold a house and this was never flagged up when we bought it!)

We had a retention on our mortgage for damp. We moved in, put the heating on and had it dry in three months. The mortgage company paid out. My house was built in 1837.