Survey says house is a nonstandard build

[whatafineday]

The surveyor said the house we just made an offer on is a steel framed construction with brick cladding. Both the seller and the EA siad they had no idea it was nonstandard. The house was built in early 2000. So more like a town house than one of those post war non standard houses.

Anyone with experience of this build type?

I am aware of the potential difficulty in getting mortgage (we are cash buyer coincidentally) and resale. But right now the biggest question is the build quality. Does the relatively young age make it more robust?

Is the house a one off or is it part of a development? I assume that the seller didn't to a self build? Are there any obvious features of the house which would suggest why the builder opted for a steel frame? E.g. large openings in the exterior walls, open plan spaces, unsupported overhangs etc.

No the relatively young age doesn't make it more robust, in fact unless it is a one off I would assume the opposite. Yes the post war houses are definitely ones to avoid though.

I've seen this on Reddit recently, someone bought their house 5 years ago with a mortgage no issue, but when they came to sell no lender would touch it (including their own) claiming it to be non traditional build, (was a more recent new build) lenders are much more risk averse at the moment.

A surveyor will be able to tell you his robust it is, but I'd be sure to buy it with a heavy discount, whether it impacts you right now or not is irrelevant, an un-mortgageable house is worth less, so don't over pay.

I actually thought that the EA and the owners needed to inform potential buyers of steel frame?

I find it odd that they declared they didn’t know, especially the vendor.

As you’re aware there are those that were built post war relatively cheaply and are very difficult to get mortgages on due to inherent problems. I’ll be honest and say that it would put me off a 2000 build of steel frame as normally my understanding is that it’s the cheaper style build.

You can get a specialist surveyor to check the steel frame which is crucial. We recently sold MILs home which was SF and needed to do several thousands of pounds worth of remedial work with guarantees prior to sale.

Your buyer pool will be reduced greatly going forward and for me I would be wary. I ruled out a SF house on my last move which was 1990s build and it sold for significantly less than asking and I know had required remedial work with certicates. Problem is that you can get work done then the certifications but going forward the company that does the certification and guarantee then doesn’t exist so it’s useless.

It is a one off. The current owner bought it from the builder. The company behind has been dissolved. Looks like someone dipping into property development after chancing upon a tiny plot. The house is squeezed between houses. Perhaps steel makes more sense for a small construction site?

What kind of discount should i be looking at? Its difficult to find comparable prices for traditional houses already. Even more complicated for non traditioanl. My surveyor did mention a few other issues with the house but those are problems prevalent in many. So the only issue sticking out is the steel frame.

I am actually quite prepared to go ahead with the purchase. Its such a high pressure and time consuming process that i just want to get it done and over with. Though comes resale it will be another headache.

My first question to the EA when i called to book a viewing was if its a non traditional build. I asked it not because i thought it would be (the brick facade can be really deceiving!). Was just going through my list of standard questions. The answer was no.

The surveyor asked the seller the same question after the survey. And the answer was i dont know. Which is not reassuring.

What kind of remedial work did you have to do on your MIL's house? How old is it? Did you hire a structural engineer or some specialist company? Can you share the contact?

Thank you

Non standard construction doesn't always mean difficulty with mortgages or resale, in my experience. I bought one (1940s steel frame with pre fabricated concrete panels) 5 years ago. I got a mortgage with Nationwide without any issues at all. I've just sold it and my buyer also got a mortgage with a high Street lender without any issues.

The price of the house was lower than similar sized houses of standard construction though. There are quite a lot in the city where I live, they're good solid houses and popular with FTB as you get a lot of house and garden for a relatively small amount of money (under 200k).

It’s a relatively new house, where are the plans and specifications?
People don’t build a house then throw everything away. Are they with the deeds?

Have asked my solicitor to request this info from the seller. So the wait continues and the anxiety is at its highest...

Any rough guide on the discount traditional vs non-traditional in your area?

Would like some reference if we are to renegotiate the price.

My flat is steel framed (a lot of modern flats are) so is non-standard construction and my lender wanted at least a 25% deposit.

You will massively struggle if you want to sell it later.

@whatafineday I have no idea sorry, I would start by looking at price comparisons with traditional built houses in your area, but it's tricky with the market dipping now as the difference might be more stark now with lenders getting more risk averse but there probably won't be much data to go on. But maybe look historically too.

A friend had to sell a steel framed house that also had cavity wall insulation. The wall insulation had become damp and all had to be removed pre sale , the steel frame although in itself was fine had to be treated before the mortgage company would let the seller proceed .

Usually EA often put in the property details that the property is of Non standard construction. Personally,I have avoided them, due to re sale options later on. Most of these type of properties are purchased by cash buyers. So you may be limited to finding proceedable buyers in future. Good luck with whatever you decide. Moving is very stressful, we downsized in 2021, I can empathise

Its such a high pressure and time consuming process that i just want to get it done and over with. This is a really foolish attitude.

You will have resale issues for certain.

I personally would decline and walk away, find something more straightforward.

I wouldn’t buy it. Not worth the headache down the line if you ever did want to sell up.

@whatafineday Is say they're priced about 20% lower than similar sized non standard construction. They are all ex-local Authority housing on large estates though, so that also impacts on comparative value, if you see what I mean.

You need a structural engineer to fully inspect the frame and give you a full report on it. If it needs remedial work they can recommend people.
The problem is the guarantee going forward if the company that do the remedial work don't exist in the future then the guarantee is useless.

MILs house was a nightmare to sell (but was 1970s). Repairs to the steel were under £10k with guarantee going forward. It was a small amount of remedial work required. The buyer pool was small and we got a buyer with a very large deposit.

The house that I had viewed which was SF that I rejected had been marketed at £525K. Eventually sold at £450k to a cash buyer.

I also find it unlikely that the vendor did not know it was steel frame as you need relevant insurance!

Presuming the vendor had their own survey when they purchased, they themselves would know it was steel framed and would have needed SF insurance on their property.