Survey on listed stonehouse - should we offer or not?

[foxyvox]

We have been trying to buy a house for a very long time now, but with the market being crazy it's been... tough.
One of the houses we've viewed over the past two months came back on the market. EA say it's because the buyers changed jobs and are buying somewhere else. They had already commissioned a survey and were very kind to share the conclusions with us.
This is a grade II listed 250+ years four storey stonehouse.
It hasn't been lived in over the past few years and there are a number of issues (some picked up by survey, some obvious during the viewing):

• some historical movement which resulted in cracking over 20+ years old


• defects in the stucture which warrant investigation - risk of water escape and stability of the porch canopy


• blown plaster


• outdated decor, carpets, etc


• dampness affecting mostly the ground floor


• roof void was converted; timbers should be assessed yearly for decay and in winter for possible damp from roof sweat


• is Sarking left in place after conversion this needs removing and replaced with a breathable fabric


• it is worth review to ensure a form of passive air circulation has been included to reduce roof sweat


• ceilings need testing for asbestos


• widespread woodworm infestation; active in one room


• possibility of timbers rotting under dinning room (concrete slab over timbers)


• moisture tracking in through chimney breast - needs passive vents


• some issues with poor design to the shower room causing water to soak inner walls


• window casements in moderate condition except one which is in bad shape


• some cracked glass on windows, some held in place with duck tape.


• stone window frames need treating with Stormdry


• roof in moderate condition, some patches of lost mortar


• flashing needs installing to one chimney


• cracking and missing mortar to a chimney flashings resulting in water ingress


• failing porch canopy


• failed gutters and downpipes resulting in water saturation to the walls


• front wall in moderate condition; some repointing needed


• back wall in dilapidated condition with some repairs made in cementitious mortar


• foalige growing against elevations


• high radon levels


• cooker unusable (one of those big Rayburns)

These are the main ones, I haven't listed everything as some things are clearly minor.

We are in the fortunate position of being able to see the conclusions of the survey before offering. I think this is useful for everyone involved, as we wouldn't expect to renegociate a price after the survey (we'd still get one as we would want to understand the house in depth).

The house is on at OIEO 650. It's really difficult to know what the market value is given the type of house and the way the market has moved in this area (e.g houses sold 2 years ago for 330 seem to now be listed for 650; not selling, but listed).

We are considering offering 5% less than asking, so 620. Maybe we can negociate higher, but we are weary of pushing ourselves in this current market and climate. Plus, the mortgage valuation may come back lower than what it's listed for, and I wouldn't want to live somewhere and not be able to do all the repairs it needs.

Views and opinions? The house has been on the market for 2.5 months but only came back on beginning of last week.The EA said there are three further second viewings this week. They've had other viewings and no offers yet. There was a couple who was interested and saw the survey but didn't offer. The sellers want to sale but ''don't want to give it away'' (I don't know what that means)

We have sold our house to first time very keen buyers, who have arranged their survey to be completed next week. We would have a 25% deposit, and wouldn't have any trouble getting a mortgage.

Is 620 a decent offer considering the survey? We don't want to be offending anyone but the prices have been so inflated in this particular area it's really hard to know where true value lies.

Any views about the survey? Should we run away?

Ty

Honestly, those issues (90% are fine but it's the 10% that very much aren't) I wouldn't offer. But that's me!

Sorry , I have read the post twice, but you don’t mention a region, so it’s hard to know if the price is appropriate or not. But what I would suggest is getting advice on what fixing it will cost, and what it would be worth in mint condition.

That said, I live in an area of many stone houses and radon issues. The houses are harder to heat than modern houses; require a lot of retrofit to meet insulation standards; often have lathe and plaster walls which are a pain to renovate, and are hard to knock about.
But they can have immense character and charm.
So ,, can you be bothered with the hassle?

We're in the SW (Gloucestershire). We've talked about the fact the house will not be energy efficient and it will be a pain to heat and we seem to have come to terms with that. It's a lovely house and we would be happy to love it.

Are you getting reliance on the survey? If not, and if the disrepair is worse than imagined or you don’t commission your own survey, you have read it as an FYI only document and you can’t argue negligence or sue if anything was missed.

Do you love it?
Do you have the budget to do all the repairs necessary to make it habitable, plus a decent contingency fund for building materials and labour costs inflation (topical!) and any other unforeseen, unreported issues?

I’ve restored 2 x Grade II Listed properties and am about to embark on a Listed stone cottage (in an ok state of repair, but there’s always something) and it’s not for the faint hearted. But all of the points in the survey are absolutely typical for an uninhabited property of this age, so it’s all fairly unsurprising.

Doesn’t mean it can be fixed with a snap of the fingers and very much depends on your appetite for dealing with everything, managing the build and your finances for fixing it all.

As for price, it’s up to you - you pay what it’s worth to you, in compliance with your mortgage offer.

Radon - Some areas are typical geology radon gas areas. You can install monitors if needed.

The house can probably be made more energy efficient in discussion with building conservation officers. We fitted double glazed wooden sash and case windows and lofts can be well insulated with sheep wool.

You’ll need Listed Building Consents to do any works that is not strictly like for like replacement and to use traditional building materials in any restoration to keep the property moisture balanced. Could you live there during the works or in rented / family accommodation in the meantime? Do you know good builders that have capacity to take this on in the (near) future? Builders are flat out round our way.

We are currently renovating a grade 2 building and I think you have to really love the place to make it worthwhile regardless of price. You also need some really comfortable margins in your budget as everything costs more, unexpected things come up, ongoing maintenance, etc. you also have to be really patient - we were living in ours for over a year before any actual work started due to pre-planning, planning, bat surveys, etc. I can’t see if you state whether it is habitable or not, but be prepared for a long haul to getting everything sorted.

despite all of the above, I still love the place and feel very lucky to be where I am!

Active woodwork and damp would mean it would be a no from me.

Much of what's on the list is sortable, although the cost could well be more than expected as it's a pretty long list.

if for any reason you can't completely eradicate the wood worm, and goodness knows quite how much of the hidden structure of the house they've already eaten, then you're in big trouble.

Damp is also a massive pain if it can't easily be sorted. Why is the ground floor damp? If be concerned because the survey doesn't seem to give any specific reason.

The only thing that would make me hesitate is structural movement. If it's historic (very) and hasn't moved since then it's possibly stabilized but if there's any sign of more recent movement it may be a good idea to get a soil survey done. The rise in temperatures is starting to cause problems in buildings that traditionally have stood the test of time throughout Europe and underpinning is an expensive hassle. Damp on the ground floor may be as a result of poor air circulation and the foliage which needs clearing well away from the walls ( if you are lucky) woodworm a nuisance but easily treated. I'd probably be a fair bit meaner with my offer, but if you love it and it falls into your overall budget then good luck!

You need a survey done by a historic building specialist. Some of what's listed sounds like it's been done by someone who isn't tbh.

It is really hard to advise without knowing more about the age and construction of the house. Any chance of a Rightmove link? The concrete floor and woodworm would both worry me.

None of this is untypical of old buildings. The question is whether you have the finances to sort it all out. Bearing in mind that once you start renovations you tend to find further stuff the surveyor couldn’t see.

Also in the SW and have a 250 year old stone house - mercifully not listed. Most of that wouldn't worry me.

Your survey looks very like ours - we had woodworm and serious downstairs damp. Both cost a lot less to sort out than I expected. We have asbestos in the ceilings too I expect and the dining room floor was completely rotten. We have no real foundations to speak of and our floors downstairs are badly damaged flagstones which we have had to cover.

The main bugbears are that the place does cost an absolute fortune to heat. It's bliss in this weather but gets very cold in the winter. There is also always something that needs doing

The listing will add to renovation costs as you'll have to make sure you follow the rules on what materials you can use.

Do I regret it? No not for one second. I love my rambling old house.