Should we fix this or leave it before survey

[0hshutupshirley]

We have decking in our garden that's old. A couple of the planks are a bit dodgy. DH wants to replace them before our buyers have their survey because it will definitely get picked up. The problem is if we do that they'll be a different colour to the others until they age. Would you do it or leave it?
He's replaced others in the past and they take about a year to fade and blend it with the others.
My view is we should just leave it, get it picked up on the survey and at that stage ask the buyers if they want us to fix it for them.
Nobody would pull out of a sale because of a few dodgy decking planks would they? Especially if we offer to fix them. I mean like I said we could just do it but then it will look odd and it feels a bit unfair making that decision for them.

Personally, I wouldn’t fix it. The survey may not even mention the decking as it’s not directly part of the house.

When I bought this house, it was very evident the decking needed replacing when the estate agent put his foot straight through it when walking across it! However, no mention at all on the survey.

I am not sure how much they will look into the decking. My survey when I bought said the fence was strong and had a good future ahead (not actual words) and it fell down in the first winter winds after I moved in.

You could always just ask the buyers what they prefer. They might want to rip the lot out anyway.

You could replace the two planks and paint the whole area with a decking paint - but I wouldn't bother.

It wouldn't put me off a property as personally I don't like decking so I would be considering how best to remove it and replace it with an alternative like paving.

Do they have kids? If so, and if it's no bother, then I'd replace the dodgy planks.

Decking is the least of people's worries when buying a house. You're right there is no point and it just draws attention to the fact they need replacing.

Leave it. Presumably it’s something they would have noticed when they viewed the house. It’s expected that a seller will likely have things they need to do when they buy a house that isn’t a new build.

Yeah, I'd leave it. If the planks are in a place where you could reasonably place a few potted plants over/around so people don't walk over that spot, it could work as a temporary measure while the surveyor is there and during any second viewings with your buyers.

Everyone expects to find issues when they buy a house, it's normal. You grumble about it to your family and friends, then either you fix it yourself, rip it out, or get used to it and forget there was an issue until you come to sell in 10 years yourself. (bathroom door handle, I'm looking at you...)

If you’re going to do it you need to stain and treat the whole area. The fact you’ve said it would need to wait till it’s faded says you’ve not been maintaining it, which is fine, but likely the whole thing needs replacing and they will know that as soon as they look at it. So they don’t need the survey to pick up on it.

I’d leave it and play it by ear if it gets mentioned. New owners might not even want decking at all and might plan to rip it out and do something different with the garden anyway.

It's easily fixable by purchasers, so I'd leave it. They might be planning on ripping out anyway as decking can be slippy and sometimes attracts vermin.