Valuation survey could not have been worse - 100% mortgage retention

[LeslieKnope2020]

I've just recieved the mortgage valuation survey and it literally could not be worse. The surveyor has recommended a mortage retention for the full amount for the following points:

"Evidence of movement was noted in the form of cracking to the rear addition. This appears significant and likely to be progressive"

"There are elements appearing to contain asbestos"

"Obtain a report on internal timbers and possible damp behind dry lining"

"Obtain a report on possible asbestos linings to the rear addition"

"Future demand is likely to be adversely affected by the fact that this is a refurbishment project and therefore not readily mortgageable to all lenders"

It sounds shit and I suppose we won't know the full extent until we pay for the structural survey but then what? What can we do? Do we ask the seller to put these things right before we buy? If it does have movement, damp and asbestos it will literally cost thousands - much more than we could afford to put right anyway.

We're first time buyers and this house is definitely 'the one'. I have day dreamed about my children growing up in this house, every christmas, every birthday party in the garden, every easter egg hunt, every winter walk around the village and coming back and putting the log burner on etc this house is perfect - we will not find a house like this one again. It was built in 1850, very unique and full of charm and it's actually quite large for our budget.

I'm clearly thinking with my heart here so I need unbiased opinions. What would you do?

this house is definitely 'the one'

Trust me, it's not!

Damp in a cob house is a deal breaker for me. Lived in a cob house for a while, the dry rot was ridiculous - like a tree in the wall, got into CD cases etc.

Only way to solve was to demolish the affected wall and rebuild with breeze blocks... fortunately not my house.

Run, don't look back!

Aside from all the other problems mentioned, its proximity to the 'stream', which is actually the river Till, would put me off the most. Even if I had the money to do it up, I wouldn't buy it for this reason. I would bet this house has been flooded several times, and water and cob are a terrible mix - the house will literally disolve.
It's a disaster waiting to happen. Walk away op.

Don't do this @LeslieKnope2020

It's lovely to have a dream of the fixer-upper wreck that you turn into a beautiful family home. That option is simply not open to you as a first-time-buyer reliant on a mortgage. Those magazine lifestyle articles about properties like this are great fun to read and fantasise about. What they don't mention is that the owners are independently wealthy, didn't need a mortgage and have money to burn so don't mind being responsible for a money pit.

Let someone else take on this nightmare and find a home that is structurally sound and safe to live in. Pay off the mortgage and save save save. If you have a decent pension maybe you can take on the money-pit of your dreams as a retirement project.

I really wouldn’t waste money on a structural survey

Aside from all the other problems mentioned, its proximity to the 'stream', which is actually the river Till

One of my colleagues has a stream down the end of his garden.
A few years ago it burst the banks and they/their neighbours had to pay for culverting and future preventative works.

He is a company director so paid a hefty wedge but even he was wincing at his share of the overall costs.

OP, you can't afford this house, you have to let it go.

shrewton.com/issues-affecting-the-parish/flood-plan-and-control/
For your info, op.

There are 96 properties for sale for £260k and under within a 10 mile radius with 3 bedrooms.

Take off the rose-tinted spectacles.

Don’t waste money on a survey. Walk away now. This will cost so so so much money to fix and be so so so much stress. It will drown you. Find another place, and be happy! This is one for a cash buyer with deep pockets, and that’s not you.

OP, the one thing that jumps out at me from your posts is you saying that if the second survey shows the work does need doing then either the Vendors will have to do it or reduce the price.

Reducing the price won’t help at all if you still have a 100% mortgage retention will it? Or have I missed something?

You cannot rely on a survey commissioned by someone else!

Let it go.

There will be other houses and it’s the family in your house that make it a home.

Just to make you aware the quote to remove an asbestos roof from one of our small outbuildings is €30,000 !

in your shoes, I'ld be interested in this house - www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-82696199.html. OK it's modern, but it's nice, looks in good condition, and returfing the garden would be a nice and reasonably achievable project

You can ask the seller to put stuff right. They might though think it's priced accordingly. Or get quotes and knock the amount off your offer.

Years ago I offerred on a 26k house which was similar price to other houses. Survey valued it at 12k. Vendor was desperate to sell and rang me and offered to pay for all the work. But it was mainly connected to subsidence and I walked away.

If you have the money then crack on, asking the seller to pay might work if they are desperate to sell and think they will struggle to get someone to pay as much as you had offered.

Reading between the lines though it’s a nice house priced as a project which is cheap because they expect it to need a cash buyer. If it was expected to be readily mortgageable it may have been listed at a considerably higher price.

The Evidence of movement I have seen so many times before and the problem lies with newer extensions. Even taking the extension down and rebuilding it wouldn’t solve the issue.
You have an older house built with a foundation probably could be only a 1 foot deep foundation. The house moves (like all houses do a little) Then you attach an extension with 6 ft solid foundations that doesnt move as much.
The 2 parts of the build are moving at different rates. Not necessarily sinking but moving.

Obtain a report on internal timbers and possible damp behind dry lining

So they want you to fork out more money for a report.
Please note on this report it doesn’t say there is damp it is saying there may be but the surveyor doesn’t know.

Obtain a report on possible asbestos linings to the rear addition

Again another report about something the surveyor doesn’t know about.

All houses built even up to the 1980s contain asbestos so that is just a lazy thing to put

Future demand is likely to be adversely affected by the fact that this is a refurbishment project and therefore not readily mortgageable to all lenders

So in other word if you don’t do work to it then it will become unmortgagable and when you come to sell the mortgage company might not get their money back. But if you are planning work then that shouldn’t affect you.

I have sold old properties before and I have watched as the buyers have had to spend out thousands on surveys and reports for no reason.

It is a shock the surveyor didn’t say there was no record of planning permission (that is a regular that crops up) and if it was built with no planning permission then the council might want to tear it down.

I had one surveyor scurry round an old thatch cottage I was selling, 7ft thick walls, stood for 400 years and was mentioned on a tv programme about houses that could take a direct hit from a nuclear bomb and the 4 walls would still be standing. He said the house was so old it could collapse at any time. He recommended a full structural survey.

The structural survey guy came in, he jumped up and down then asked me for a cup of tea.
He had a quick look round and then left.

Cost to the buyer £400

Another cob horror storey - house near a road I drove along regularly. Had shabby old lean to extension, extension replaced, then road next to house closed and caravan appeared in back garden - major structural stuff happens to house over course of 5 years - caravan remains in garden.

House is now stunning and has been completely rebuilt. I will never own a cob house!

Whilst I can see why anyone might think this could be a dream house, with the emphasis on could it really doesn't sound like you have either the budget or the experience to sort it out properly OP I agree you're wearing rose tinted glasses and will rue the day if you press ahead. I also think a full structural survey will cost you £££ better spent elsewhere on a different property. Sometimes you need your head to rule your heart.

I longed to buy a basement flat with a sweet little courtyard garden out back and the lane above. Eventually after much soul searching my head told me it just had too many issues. Two years later there were flash floods in the area and the wall at the back of the sweet courtyard was like Niagara Falls with nowhere to drain away.

This house really needs a builder to take it on.

Thought I would update you all. We decided not to go ahead with the purchase! We couldn't risk moving in and finding big problems we hadn't budgeted for as we wouldn't have been able to afford it. We spent a few days trawling through Rightmove and booked a viewing of a house we had originally said no to and, after viewing, it seems even more perfect than the cottage so we put an offer in yesterday.

I'm also considering putting a complaint in agaist the cottage estate agent. As far as my knowledge goes with consumer rights, both the seller and the agent has to disclose accurate information about anything that could influence our decision to buy. After the mortgage valuation came back telling us to get a structural engineer out to look at the crack, I emailed the agent explaining my worries and she got back to me saying "don't worry, the seller's survey wasn't that extreme". I obviously took that as something was indeed picked up on a previous survey. I asked the agent outright if structural issues or subsidence had been picked up (consumer law states questions like this must be answered honestly and accurately) and the agent had the cheek to not answer the questions but to offer to sell me the seller's survey instead. Right then and there we knew it was over for the cottage dream but we're now even more happy with the other property so I guess it was like fate pushing us towards something better.

Thank you for the update. I'm really pleased you found somewhere else you love so quickly. Has your offer been accepted yet?

Personally I'd let the issue with the cottage estate agent go now and focus on your new home. Most estate agents are gits for buyers sadly as they work for the sellers.

Our offer on the new house has just been accepted! We're so excited to finally be getting away from military accommodation and getting a large garden (which is probably actually average but our garden for the past 6 years has been three fenceposts long and three across!). We want to change the kitchen so I'm sure I'll be back in a few months asking about those

Probably the right choice! Good luck :)

I'm glad you found another place