Advice please on loft conversions regs.

[3asAbird]

We are looking to buy our 1st family home.

We have seen a couple online that state 3 bedrooms plus loft room.

Are loft rooms not legally allowed to be called bedrooms?
Do they not add value as technically there are 4 bedrooms but states 3rd box as a study.

The loft room has an ensuite
But the pics show no bed or the room dressed as a bedroom so is this because it fails meet building regs and should it be valued the same as every other similar house in the street.

The house next door and couple of others in the street sold for no more than 240k.

The house with loft and ensuite is listed as 3 beds.

For 265k.
It's has big garden but rest of house needs work.

The estate agents are holding an open day in October which makes me wonder if sellers on any hurry to move at all.

I fancy taking a look but if I offer 240k like house next door sold in June they would say no.

I dont think it's worth 265k.

Baffled why spend the money converting if it cant legally be called 4 bedrooms or add additional value.

You have to meet building regs requirements for a loft conversion and have the certificate to prove it in order for the room to count as a bedroom. Perhaps they don't have these. However it can still be listed as additional space, just like a basement that isn't habitable, and therefore increase the house price. But it won't increase the price as much as an additional bedroom would.

It’s very common estate agent phrase which signals that it will not have the full buildings regs certificate for loft conversion. This covers floor strengthening, minimum height requirement, insulation and fire safety and access requirements.

We had a boarded out and floored loft room that was used as an office - looked very nice,but we then needed to use it as a bedroom which would have involved adding more natural light anyway ( small Velux only) so had a proper conversion done which required adhearence to quite strict regulations as I described above. The minimum height thing is one that makes it a bit tricky for some houses. . The regulations seem to get tweaked all the time but here is quute a good description www.greaterlondonproperties.co.uk/can-call-loft-room-extra-bedroom/

Thanks everyone I'm just wondering why spend the money on converting ie adding velux windows and small ensuite if it can't be dressed and listed as an actual bedroom.

Says it's 3 bed end of terrace over 3 floors the smallest bedroom being listed as a study .

The floor plan lists the loft as master bedroom but the picture has no bed in it.
Does this mean it's not a conversion that meets regs.

Is it worth 25k more than the same 3 bed house that sold next door in June.

My RM

Property details

Key features:Large Garden3 bedroom End of TerraceGarage and off Road ParkingOver Three FloorsUPVC Double Glazing ThroughoutNew Combi Boiler

Full description

OPEN HOUSE - EXCLUSIVE PRICE £265,000 !!- 30TH OCTOBER 2018 - TIME - 11:00AM -12:30PM. PLEASE CALL OFFICE IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO ARRANGE A VIEWING PRIOR !!
Spread out over three floors, this large end of terrace property comprises of a lounge and good sized kitchen diner on the ground floor. Upstairs you will find two good sized double bedrooms with one fitted wardrobe. Across the landing is a study and family bathroom. The top floor comprises of a large master bedroom with en-suite, the room feels light and airy due to the Velux windows allowing lots of light into the space. The property benefits from having a good sized front garden with parking and garage at the back. Part of the garden is on a Separate title so there is some development opportunity

My RM

Property details

Key features:Large Garden3 bedroom End of TerraceGarage and off Road ParkingOver Three FloorsUPVC Double Glazing ThroughoutNew Combi Boiler

Full description:

Lounge
15' x 14'7" (4.57m x 4.45m)

Kitchen Diner
17'5" x 12'1" (5.31m x 3.69m)

Porch
4'8" x 3'4" (1.42m x 1.01m)

Master Bedroom
17'5" x 14'5" (5.3m x 4.4m)

En-suite
4'2" x 6'7" (1.26m x 2.01m)

Study
6' x 4'11" (1.83m x 1.51m)

Bedroom 2
11'1" x 13'2" (3.38m x 4.01m)

Bathroom
7'8" x 5'3" (2.34m x 1.6m)

Bedroom 3
11'1" x 11'9" (3.38m x 3.58m

I feel like the agents are trying mislead a d this property does not meet regulations or it would say 4beds. The sturdy is in fact the 3rd bedroom.

265k exclusive price
Been on market for few weeks
More than any other house in street by 25k.

No pic of study and floor plan says it measures 6 x4 so is super tiny probably was 3rd bedroom but reduced in size
to make the stairs they took space from box room making it too small to put a bed hence study.

The only reason this appealed was the extra bedroom but study would fit a cot and not much else.

I dont think this conversion meets regulations
Plus less storage in loft and no garage leaves question whwre do we store stuff.
We could buy a shed I guess.

This could be tricky house to sell if we moved on.

In that particular case they are listing the loft room as a bedroom, though, which means they will most likely have building regs for it. In fact it is the master bedroom. The study room is very, very tiny, though, and many potential buyers would be irked if they were filtering for 4 habitable bedrooms and this was included in that category. They could have listed the small room as study/box .

You can check online for building regs - on your local authority planning site.

The estate agent has described it as a bedroom and they're usually careful about this.

If it isn't officially a bedroom it is still usable space - great playroom, office etc.

So it is listed as a bedroom and the box room isn't. It will have full building regs by the looks of things

Without seeing the floor plan, I could also hazard a guess that the positioning of the upper stairs may mean that the window of the study room has been blocked off, so could not reasonably be called a bedroom ? Our second bedroom had a bit bitten out of it to provide upper stairs, but the room was quite large and a window near the wall so retained sufficient light to continue being a decent bedroom. I have seen other versions in my road ( same style house) where the stairs were arranged differently and the remaining room was then turned into a study with artificial light because the stairs intruded more ( meant they had different top floor layout. )

It's possible that the loft conversion was carried out before building regs came in the mid 80s depending on the age of the building.

Thanks just seems odd that the photo of what shoukd be jewel in the crown is not presented was a bedroom

Will quiz the estate agents Monday.

Looks like it's listed as a 3 bedroom house, but with larger bedrooms than the one next door that went for £240K, and with a study in addition (previous 3rd bedroom). I don't think you could call a 6' x 4'11" room a bedroom as you wouldn't get a single bed in it.

We are about to start our loft conversion and it will create a 4th bedroom as we have the necessary ceiling height etc and all building regs included, and the additional bedroom will bloody well better add value to the house. As a PP says, look online to check for the building regs.

I'd go round for a nosy and see what you think.

The loft room seems entirely unpresented as anything ! Maybe there are toddlers and the parents are currently/have stopped using the top room as their bedroom in order to be on the same floor at night ?

The price is higher because it comes with a potential building plot. It is also end terraced. Gold dust to developers.

The delayed open day in October is to give the agents time drum up lots of interest with footfall high over that one day. The aim is to have more than one interested party bidding against each other.

The house is being marketed as 3 double bedrooms and a study so I would assume building regs. A phone call to the agent would confirm this or not

3asAbird look on Rightmove - Market information tab. You will see the property listing from its previous sale. The different description other photos will give you a clearer picture.

The potential building plot is a separate title though so unless the plot is landlocked and only accessible via this house's plot then that might not be the reason for the higher asking price.

It doesnt look like any kids live there
It needs a lot if work more than we have yo spend on top of inflated asking price
And garden doesn't seem quite big enough to do a proper land grab plus it does not state they have planning in place.

Can you just post a link to the RM listing OP? You've posted virtually everything else anyway. I would hazard a guess the owners are older and may not want/need to hike up to the attic to go to bed so are using one of the other bedrooms instead now their children have grown up and left home.

It's a bigger house than the ones that sold for £240k. That's why it is listed at a higher price. End of terrace will also contribute to it.

The loft not having a bed in it is neither here nor there. Perhaps the current owners have never used it as a bedroom so don't have a bed in it. Many people don't use houses exactly how they are designed.

Must admit separate title confused me.
Garden is big hence why caught my eye
Looking for family home not development investment opportunity.

Was trying work out if it's overvalued and price is negotiable as ticks some boxes
Needs new fire
New flooring
New kitchen as seems dated and hardly any units.

We looked round house same street and and similar style and its was tiny.
So assumed they all very similar.

Just post the link please! Then we can see all the relevant information. The things you have mentioned it needs are things you would like to do - unless the fire has been condemned or the flooring is in poor condition, they don't need replacing.

Wow fudge here's the link

www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-67205980.html

Think mentally talked myself or of it

It's high price and needs lot of work

If you look at nearby street prices you will see.

Also not had great experience with the agents so far they very hard sell.

Reason I asked this is seen a couple on past with loft room and agents have confirmed it dident meet regulations and couldent be described as extra bedroom

The open day things bit unusual too.

I would say the reason it's on for a higher price is because the house has the loft conversion. Looking at the other houses which have sold this year on the street, this one has borrowed space from the smallest bedroom for the stairs. You have a big loft bedroom and a second bathroom up there. 3 double bedrooms and a study.

The separate title of part of the garden is a bit of a red herring I'd say as I think it would mean it would make the garden small. I'd want to know why the owners acquired the other plot, assuming that's what they did. It's possible the garage was on a separate title and originally rented for example.

I suspect it's a house the loft conversion, end corner plot, etc make a bit out of the ordinary and the open house is because the EAs think they can drum up interest and competition from potential buyers that way. Or the owners don't want the disruption of multiple viewings on different days. I think the photos are drab and don't do it any favours - I don't think there is necessarily a lot of work to be done beyond cosmetic really.

I don't know the area at all but looking at streeview and the satelite views it look like a well situated house in a good plot. The garden is bigger than the neighbours and the house is tucked away in the corner meaning it will be quiet and more private. Even if you don't want to develop it there is very good scope to improve and add value. For all those reasons I wouldn't have thought selling it on would be a problem. Worth a look at and an offer if you like it - I wouldn't discount it until you have been inside.