Should our buyer pay for this?

[HolidayHun2020]

INCORRECT TITLE - SHOULD READ SELLER

Hello,

So to kick off we are buying a probate property and have had a reduction in the already agreed price because we had issues securing the mortgage. We had the survey and it threw up quite a bit, we went around with a family member who is a tradesmen and will be doing a lot of the work for us and he wasn’t too worried about the majority of it - it’s an old house lived in by old people so the majority of it is to be expected.

The biggest thing is that the sellers parents must have taken out the fireplaces years ago but haven’t adequately supported the roof it’s only sitting on some timber but needs a steel beam.

Would it be fair to ask the seller to pay towards the beam? I would feel bad asking them to pay someone to do it as it’s something my uncle would be doing for us for free or is it something we should be sucking up the cost of? We are getting close to exchange (no date set yet) so I don’t want it to look like we are pulling a dirty trick, but the more I have thought about it the more I’m not sure the cost should be solely on us.

Also has anyone had this done and know how much it roughly costs?

Any thoughts?

TYIA

Ah I’ve named the thread wrong that should read SELLER!!!

If your uncle is happy to do the work for free, I'd ask them to pay for the materials to complete the job.

I think this is a fair idea. I would get a quote for the job in full and then ask them to cover 50%. Its completely reasonable to both parties then. Don't be afraid to ask because they will know that this issue would likley also be noticed by any other buyer.

Ask your uncle how much he would charge to install the beam ( cost of materials) and ask them to pay that cost. They may refuse but if they do, ask them to cover 50% which seems fair.