Buying a recently renovated/refurbished house, things to consider?

[Avidgardener2]

We have had an offer accepted on a (desperately needed) larger home in london. The seller purchased this property only a few years ago and has done a lot of work very recently (rear,side,loft extension and refurb) and is selling it at a much higher value as "high-quality" finish. I'm worried we may have over-offered in our initial excitement, as nothing has sold at that price-level before on that street. Going through the searches/level 3 building survey process at the moment. The seller has provided construction company details (with 5-year warranty only on the structural elements and roof, however the windows, doors and fittings have no guarantees). Not sure how best to check that we are not paying a premium for a house that just looks glossy and new, but will have costly problems in future? Anything we should consider/information we should ask the seller for to try minimize this risk - feeling anxious about proceeding.

the windows and doors should be building regs complaint. Are they?

Is the market busy where you are? It’s manic where I am and house prices are impossible to gauge as the land registry is so behind in updating.

Honestly, all you can really expect is proof of compliance with Building Regs and planning permission. You may not find out if there is a construction issue for years to come. DP is an electrician and he is very firmly against buying something recently renovated because he doesn’t trust the competency of those who built it. At all.

BUT work out what the cost of a house would be minus the renovations / extensions (and they are very expensive now - almost prohibitively expensive unless you have hundreds of thousands sitting around) and do the maths.

I’d also say a warranty is only of any worth if the building company is still trading.

I might be minded to ask for proof of the contractors insurance - assuming your seller was sensible enough to have asked for proof.

Windows and doors should have FENSA certificates or building regs sign off.
Likewise any new electrics or boiler should have a certificate.