Ok, own up! What did you lumber your buyer with?

[BluTangClan]

Much like an old car, it's got to the stage with our house where we think "do we spend loads of money fixing it all, or bodge it all and try to sell it?".

So here's the opportunity to own up to; the mould you painted over, the crack in the wall that you moved the bookcase in front of, the hob that doesn't work when the oven's on, and the iron mark on the carpet that you put the rug on top of.

We will forgive you your sins without judgement.

Yes, we were upfront that one of the elements in the oven we left had blown, so we didn't use that setting.

We had to strip down the range oven we have now just to get the door to shut. Looked like some idiot had stood on it when open because there's a hole in the floor tiles that corresponds with where the corner of the door would have struck it.

Ava50x
Slugs coming in is almost always caused by a water leak somewhere. Think it was sarah beanie who said that. Check behind kitchen sink.

Thought me packing snow on rotten window sill was bad but I dont feel so awful now after reading some of these. Naughty bunch.

This post really hits a nerve. Moved into a property that has so many issues that the owner purposely concealed. I felt cheated but know that this is always a risk you take when buying a house. I would never do that to another family.

It’s honestly not funny or clever to lie and deceive people and cheat them out of their money.

Among other things, our survey discussed the wooden window frames - they’re all uPVC - and that they couldn’t access the gas boiler house to inspect it - the village doesn’t have gas and the oil boiler is in the utility room - so I’m not quite sure what they were trying to access!

When we compared the survey to another one that we’d had recently from the same surveyor for a different house purchase that had fallen through, we could see large sections were identical, so had been copied and pasted.

It wouldn’t even have been quite so bad if the survey hadn’t been received weeks late, delaying our purchase.

@TheTestOfTime

Among other things, our survey discussed the wooden window frames - they’re all uPVC - and that they couldn’t access the gas boiler house to inspect it - the village doesn’t have gas and the oil boiler is in the utility room - so I’m not quite sure what they were trying to access!

When we compared the survey to another one that we’d had recently from the same surveyor for a different house purchase that had fallen through, we could see large sections were identical, so had been copied and pasted.

It wouldn’t even have been quite so bad if the survey hadn’t been received weeks late, delaying our purchase.

Our survey suggested we lift the floor boards downstairs to check for damp. It’s solid concrete floors downstairs.

Yes I hid a few things but nothing that would have been dangerous or needed prompt attention. whereas when I bought it I moved in to be confronted with ab old unused water heater that was leaking, it was supposed to have been taken out but instead it was filling with water and dripping through the ceiling of down stairs flat. I had to pay for her ceiling to be repaired and a plumber to remove when I was on the bones of my arse. Dad paid! I'd just got divorced and had been living with my sister. It was terrifying but better than being married 🤣🤣🤣🤣

This thread has highlighted the fact that surveys are largely useless and surveyors aren't what they used to be. Didn't surveyors used to be chartered or am I getting confused? When I used to work for a firm of architects in my teens, they all used RICS people. Going back a bit though.

They really are useless. The fact that my buyer’s survey missed the fully damp kitchen floor says it all for me.
Our own survey showed up nothing either but the house was riddled with issues.

For our current house we paid for full structural survey. So much cut and paste "we suggest you get a specialist electrical report / damp report" etc etc. They completely missed the fact that the damp course had been penetrated in several places round the back of the house, plus several other things. The surveyor ended up refunding what we'd paid for the survey as they'd missed so much.

Fortunately it didn't matter in the end as we knocked most of the house down and rebuilt (this was always the plan - plus it got rid of all of the botch DIY jobs! Only to be replaced by botched builder jobs... ) but it did make us ask what the point of the surveyor was, when they caveated most things and missed things a 'normal person' could have spotted.

The trouble is that in the current market properties are being fought over - you haven’t got time for a second viewing before making an offer, and certainly if you are dithering then several other buyers will nip in there.
We bought our house some years ago, but twenty viewings were lined up for the first day as it is in a sought-after road. In the end there was heavy snow and we were the only viewer who made it, and we offered asking price on the spot. The house is a flippin’ money pit...

Furthermore, as others have said, unless there is a really big problem, you have to accept that older houses will have a good many “quirks”. Certainly poor decoration is no reason to be cross with a vendor.

Surveys are largely pointless as seen in this thread. Throw a shite solicitor into the mix and you’re really going in blindfolded. As a PP said, a second viewing is often not possible when there are others interested in the property so you end up making a very expensive snap decision. Am I talking from experience? Yes!

We moved into a property and inherited fleas from their cat.

@ionlyasked

My central heating was really noisy. No matter what we did it would make a clanking sound soon as the pipes got hot. We didnt turn it on for house viewings.

@ionlyasked ours is the same! Works fine but loud it starts heating up. It's hardly registered with us but since deciding to sell we've been hyper aware of it!

another house we went to see had a ceramic hob and stainless steel oven when we viewed and agreed to pay for.Moving in day noticed there was an old gas hob and scabby oven in place not connected to anything. Also listed on schedule was gas central heating ,couldn't find meter to read, asked neighbour to be told no gas in street. Ripped wallpaper off around the radiators to find they were plug in electric with cabes hidden in the wall. Luckily this was on day one and straight back to solicitor to sort it out, also got refund of survey and "contribution" from sellers estate agent for mis-selling.

I imagine covid restrictions are really helping people hide problems when they are selling too. I know the last few houses we've viewed we've been told not to touch anything.

@Herbie0987

We moved into a property and inherited fleas from their cat.

‘Are we packing the fleas?’ ‘Nah just leave them...’

Doesn’t anyone ever get left nice things?

My last seller left the most beautiful antique mirror in the hallway - it must have been deliberate, she couldn’t have missed it and I sent her a letter with her forwarded post asking if she wanted it back, but never got a reply.

@MedusasBadHairDay

I imagine covid restrictions are really helping people hide problems when they are selling too. I know the last few houses we've viewed we've been told not to touch anything.

Plus having all the doors and windows open will help hide any smells.

@Chocolatier9

Doesn’t anyone ever get left nice things?

My last seller left the most beautiful antique mirror in the hallway - it must have been deliberate, she couldn’t have missed it and I sent her a letter with her forwarded post asking if she wanted it back, but never got a reply.

Maybe it’s haunted and she couldn’t wait to sell up and leave it behind.

Get a builder to go and have a look at the place. They are far more candid that a surveyor whose main motivation is to cover their arses so they don't get sued. Before we bought our current house I paid a small fortune for the usual crap survey full of cut-and-paste caveats but I also managed to find a tame builder who went round the place with me and immediately saw a few things that needed further investigation — like the place where a chimney breast had been removed downstairs and nothing had been done to support the remains of it in the room above. He also quietly shifted a chest of drawers while I took the owner into the garden and spotted the damp behind it and noticed that some floorboards in the hall were too springy and asked the vendor if he could lift the carpet and then one of the floorboards. There was rot in the floor joists. We knocked £7,000 off the asking price with just the one visit.

@Chocolatier9

Doesn’t anyone ever get left nice things?

My last seller left the most beautiful antique mirror in the hallway - it must have been deliberate, she couldn’t have missed it and I sent her a letter with her forwarded post asking if she wanted it back, but never got a reply.

In our first house, the owner left us a few pieces of furniture. We were very happy to receive that as we were too broke to buy thing right away.

@TheBullfinch

This thread has highlighted the fact that surveys are largely useless and surveyors aren't what they used to be. Didn't surveyors used to be chartered or am I getting confused? When I used to work for a firm of architects in my teens, they all used RICS people. Going back a bit though.

What are RICS people @TheBullfinch?

Our last house was done so badly and cheaply. Everything leaked including the toilet. They also left three skips worth of rubbish behind.

I fixed everything including structural work.