House Purchase - Inhabitable Garage Conversion

[Owlgirl14]

The house were in the process of buying has a part 'garage conversion' and was advertised as being a habitable room ie study/snug/bedroom etc.

The solicitor has already queried building regs with the sellers to which they said it didn't need them.

The survey has flagged up the alterations are unlikely to comply with current building regs and said it is inhabitable and referred to it as a store/outbuilding.

Has anyone encountered this at all?

I can only really see our options being 1) the sellers rectifying it and getting the work done and building reg sign off but doubt they would agree to this 2) Us getting quotes and getting the work done after completion 3) Walking away as we aren't getting what we thought we were/advertised

How long ago was it done? You need to know when it was converted and what the regs were at that time. Your solicitor should be able to tell you this.

The current building regs are irrelevant.

If it’s a separate building then it may well not have needed building regs. They don’t apply to small detached buildings under a certain size

i’d walk away

what other skeletons lie in the closet

the surveyor who actually surveyed the property thinks otherwise

Walk away or negotiate significant £££££ off and try to get retrospective building regs. you basically need to value it as having one less room.

I think it was about 9 years ago

Surely the current regulations are very relevant if it doesn't meet any building regulations and they haven't got any sign off. As that is what would be needed today to make it into a habitable room.

It's an integral garage I

We’ve converted our garage into a gym, it has an electric heater and lighting and a window. We’ve just changed the use, didn’t need planning permission as we’ve not altered the size, nor water pipes to it. It could be used as an office/bedroom.

Sorry, but do you mean they've said it's uninhabitable? Or do they mean inhabitable but may not have the correct docs etc?

We do like the house/location and one of the main reasons was for this additional room.

We may be able to try get some building quotes to negotiate ££££ of. They also valued it 15,000 less than what we offered

Have they said how it doesn't meet the regs? The majority of properties don't meet current regs. You could apply for retrospective.

They've said inhabitable, basically calling it an internal store rather than a room that can be used.

Yeah said unlikely to meet regs due to things like insulation, lack of heating, small door opening, lintel support etc. seems like a lot that isn't up to regs.

But surely inhabitable would mean it could be used to live in? I think it may be worth clarifying with them exactly what they mean.

Not exactly - the regulations keep changing and don't apply retrospectively. If a modification was made which was exempt from requiring building regs signoff at the time then it retains that exemption even if the same change made 5 years later would require signoff.

correct

because of the failure to get at the time

the current building reg standards will be applied

With no insulation or heating it isn't really a very useful room - it will be freezing and very expensive to keep warm - but loads of houses have rooms like that - all those Victorian terrace houses with single brick kitchen / bathroom - wouldn't meet current standards but standard homes fr many people

I suspect that door may be small compared to current standards but if you didn't notice it , that will be fine

Was there always a door to the garage from the house? A lintel suport would only be needed if it was a new doorway ( and in that case it could be major problem ) otherwise it's just how the house was built

Valued at 15k less than your offer - I would certainly make them aware of that - does that affect any mortgage offer ?

huh? in that case, it’s isn’t bloody habitable

I thought from the description as an outbuilding it was a detached building in which case if it is under a certain size it doesn't need building regulations.

You need to know what the building regulations at the time said about garage conversions. I would be very surprised if an attached garage conversion didn't need building regulations sign off although it may well not have needed planning permission. It will depend though on the structure of the building at the time and whether it already met the required standards at that time.

The regulations now are only relevant if you have to get retrospective sign off through the regularisation process. In all likelihood though they will suggest indemnity insurance. If it was done before 2013 this is a very common thing since completion certificates were not compulsory before then.

As others have said, current building regs are not relevant. Get idemnity insurance if you really want to, but either it has been used as a room or it hasn't. Choose if it works for you and go from there. You cannot ask for a price reduction because of current regs.

‘Lintel support’ 🙀🙀🙀

Id walk away tbh.

The lintel is for a new doorway. The integral doorway was covered up.

No it doesn't affect the mortgage, I'm guessing as we have a decent deposit anyway.