Dodgy survey - would you pull out of house purchase?

[greyhairdontcare]

Hi, we’ve been house hunting for over a year looking at over 40 houses and finally put an offer on a house we didn’t love but liked and it’s in an area we want. Top end of budget but we get a lot of house for our money. Compromises are shared drive, very low sloping ceilings upstairs where all bedrooms are and no garage. Upsides are walking distance to everything. Survey has come back suggesting damp, which may have affected floor in the main room and the conservatory needs replacing due to damp/mould and generally poor maintenance throughout. Vendors prepared to look at damp issue in the house and get boiler/gas certs sorted (they’d refused before) but not budge on price. Nothing else on the market in our price range and hasn’t been in a while. Would you walk away? Or risk it? Desperate to get the kids settled after moving into the area a year ago.

The survey wouldn't bother me as much as the shared drive. A quick scroll through the posts here should put you off, it's a one way road to quarells and expense.

I would walk away.

If you don't love it now you'll never love it. I believe you know in the first instant if a house is right or not. The fact you are asking means you don't.

The housing market seems really difficult at the moment. There’s just not that much coming up for sale where I am anyway. And what there is just keeps creeping up in price. We got lucky and a house we really love came up at just the right time. There are some compromises involved but the house and location are so great we’re happy to make those compromises. The question for you surely is do you like this house enough to outweigh the downsides? Can you afford to make the necessary repairs to the house? Would you be willing to give up and accept it might be another year before you manage to move?

I wouldn't be bothered by damp, its easily fixable, much more than subsidence or similar.

Presumably you knew the conservatory was a mess when you looked at it? Do you actually need a conservatory, or could you look at eventually extending into its footprint, which would be much nicer.

No one really lives in bedrooms so sloping ceiling not a deal breaker.

The location however is really important imo and something that would outweigh all the other niggles.

Buy the worst house on the best street, not the best house on the worst street and you'll always make a sound investment.

I would also walk away from the shared drive let alone any bad damp issues.

If you don't love the house anyway then problems requiring lots of money to be spent and causing disruption will probably be magnified and you might end up regretting your purchase.
We walked away after a terrible survey, but it did cause problems. Our buyers sent us hate-mail, for a start.

Yes we’ve had a shared drive before and despite no issues over 8 years we said never again! This is a long narrow drive leading up to 3 houses. Also forgot to mention it backs onto a busy road (garden is at the front of the house - it’s a pretty quirky place!)

Damp may not be easily fixed! It can be expensive if caused by leaking pipes for example. Shared drive is a no no too. You have difficult vendors and they should reduce the price with this survey. Don’t buy something you are not happy with. Something else will come up.

I wouldn’t buy anywhere quirky either. You appear desperate so are considering it. If there was a choice you wouldn’t. When you want to sell, others will think the same. Most buyers want a standard normal house!

It doesn't sound like a good idea tbh. Too many issues and compromises especially for the top of your budget.

You need to get the damp investigated. We had this in our current house, damp specialist of course found rising damp. We moved in and 5 years later had a radiator leak in the same spot... glad we didn't fork any money out for stupid damp proofing.

We walked away after a survey. I don’t regret it. We found our house less than a year later. But the market is different now. I wouldn’t touch a house with a shared drive!

Could you get the damp investigated before taking it further. it's only "suggested" damp and so may only be a minor problem. Sounds as if the surveyors are covering themselves to me as they use the phrase "may have affected" rather than being definite.
How old is the house? For very old houses it's likely that this sort of issue could come up with any house that age.

@greyhairdontcare i had a survey done recently on a house I thought I'd fallen in love with - the survey found evidence of structural movement so Building Society wouldn't lend against it. No ifs and buts just a flat out NO. My advisor said he'd never seen such a flat out refusal before so it must have been bad. The trouble is with such things picked up in a survey, you have to weigh up if its going to affect other things such as insurance or re-mortgaging . Added to that the fact that you don't sound as though you really love the house and its already top of your budget, maybe you should walk away?

Since walking away from my supposedly 'dream' house, I've realised that I convinced myself to love it as I was desperate to find somewhere. Now I'm hoping that I'm going to have an offer accepted on a house which need much improvement - but which feels much more 'me'

Thanks all - some great pointers there. Only real reason I’m hanging on by a thread is it’s spitting distance from everything including two outstanding primary schools (only one we’ve seen that is) and our youngest is due to start school next year. Eldest are at secondary school which would also be an easy walk. Why is house buying so bloody complicated sometimes??! Thanks again for your input

Shared drive would be enough to put me off.

Would not consider a house with a shared drive.

And with damp as well...

There are plenty of other houses, though people tend not to think this when caught up in looking/buying.

Damp doesn't just easily get fixed, especially if a) they've been so neglectful to let it get that bad and b) that it needs an entire conservatory and possibly floor replacing.

I wouldn't touch it with a barge pole.

Can i ask why everyone hates shared drives?

Yes I’d be interested in responses to that question too Bigus. We’ve had a shared drive before and no issues even with neighbours changing 3 times (although I’d rather not have one again just in case!) but it wouldn’t be a dealbreaker for me

I live in an old barn and there are 2 other barns in the same bit of our lane. We have a drive thing that then veers off to each property so that each of us share the first part of it i suppose. Its never even been a topic of discussion.

Surely if neither home owners block it with cars or whatever and keeps it weed free, there's no problem?

Damp wouldn't put me off, not usually expensive to fit and loads of conservatories need pulling down and it was probably obvious.

It depends on how shared the drive is (diagram!) As that too would be a stickler for me

I would walk away but mainly because it doesn't sound like you really like the house very much. I'd hold out for something else.