Negotiating sale price

[ThatJoyousScroller]

we are in the process of buying a 1930s semi detached. We had the survey and it’s recommended we had the electrics checked-which has come back as needing a full rewire. We are prepared to renegotiate our offer with the cost of the rewire but when we visited the property on Wednesday there were significant amounts of mould (definitely not awful and can fix just more annoying) that were not present when we originally made our offer. This is largely due to the property being vacant for the last 6-8m and we discovered they have not had any sort of heating on all winter. They asked the estate agent to make sure the heating system was completely turned off. Do we stand a chance of getting a reduction in with the mould? Additionally, we knew we’d need some repointing but the horrible weather this winter had caused an even bigger issue with the pointing ad added at least 2 newdamp patches under windows. How much do we ask? My husband thinks we’ll be lucky to get £2k but I feel we should ask for at least 5k? Any advice?

All you can do is ask.

The mould won't be an issue once it's lived in again though so l wouldn't mention that personally.

No money off for mould. Expect maybe half the cost of rewire at most (this is normal as you are benefiting). Where do you get your £5k from? How big is the house??

5k sounds like a fair starting point. They will probably counter offer.

I agree with @DrySherry that 5k sounds a fair starting point and I would mention the damp patches & mould alongside the full re wire as both would make it harder to sell if you pulled out. They were foolish to leave the heating off completely all winter long.

Be prepared to negotiate however.

I don't think I'd ask at all, or at least if you do, make it very polite. I am assuming you are already quite financially committed to this house - with having had surveys done etc. I think most sellers would say that you should have been able to see that you'd need to upgrade the electrics when you viewed (from light switches / number of plug sockets etc) - perhaps not a full re-wire but it was something that was identifiable. As a pp says, mould not an issue. I think you have to understand that a 1930s house (we're in one) comes with various maintenance requirements. I wouldn't want to risk upsetting the sellers at this point (unless you're in the stronger position) so just tread carefully.

What does the survey value the house at in its current condition? Does it value the house at less than what you have offered?

Does the house need a full rewire because it is unsafe or does it just not meet current regulations. The wording makes all the difference.

The mould will clear itself up when the house is lived in.

Mould doesn't always "clear itself up" or we would never see it in properties people live in but sadly, we do. It can be caused by damp problems so is definitely something to take seriously.

A bit of heat and a LOT of ventilation for a few days plus a wipe-down with white vinegar - leave it on for a couple of hours - should sort most mould, unless the problem is extreme.

Re re-wiring, as others have said, is the current wiring unsafe or does it not just meet current regulations? (For England, these are many and varied: https://www.hse.gov.uk/electricity/standards.htm - most houses over 20 years old won't meet all of them.) If the electrical installation is genuinely unsafe, then I think you should ask for a reduction. Otherwise, as another poster has also said, houses are usually valued at the state they are in at the time of being offered for sale. Old houses were not built to modern standards, but that's not always a bad thing. (By which I mean more spacious rooms, more solid walls, bigger gardens etc etc) They might not meet the latest regulations but it does not mean they're uninhabitable.

It won’t sort the mould if it’s coming from a damp source @nameXname it will just cover up the problem for a while.

@Twiglets1 That's very true, but the OP suggested in her initial post that she thought the mould was because the house had been shut up - unheated and unventilated - for some time.

I did say 'most' mould. I did mention that some mould could be 'extreme' . But if the OP's surveyor did not mention a serious damp problem, then the probability remains that the mould is caused by lack of heat plus (even more important) lack of ventilation. See here, especially the section headed 'specific recommendations': https://www.cdc.gov/mold/faqs.htm

This!!!
The fact that people think mould is not a big deal is crazy to me!
Yes many homes in England suffer from it but it most definitely isn’t normal

I would definitely ask for a reduction to treat the damp issues causing it.

We currently live in a Victorian terrace so definitely know it needs work. The electrician has deemed the electrics unsafe. I think we’ll go politely worded with evidence from survey- electrician’s report and his quote for rectifying the work and see where we get. We still want the house at the end of the day.