Found a dream house, but it has damp

[WeMeetInFairIthilien]

Just that, really.

We're looking to either extend, or we will need to move (2 DC, opposite sex).
We have planning permission to extend, which would give us 2 large bedrooms, 1 medium and 1 study, with a bigger kitchen and a small playroom. Semi detached 1930s house.

An old house 5 mins away has come on the market. It is 1850s, the old curates house. It overlooks the local church, but also the main road. Detached.

It has 5 bedrooms, and as it was an old BnB, it also has 5 bathrooms.

It would cost about double to buy, compared to extending our current home, but could give significantly more space. It is also listed.

There is a lot to do, the kitchen needs to be gutted, but the major issue is the house is damp. The walls felt damp at the corners, one carpet was wet. All of the upstairs rooms showed evidence of damp, whether active or staining. It's an odd shape, so not a standard roof either.

Just don't know how to proceed with this. Damp could truly scupper the house, but it could also be beautiful.

Remortgaging would be doable, but with 2 small children, I worry about overextending ourselves, and then having major issues.

Head and heart are saying very different things.

Take the cost of fixing the damp off the house price and go in with that offer?

Hi OP,
it’s an old property that hasn’t been lived in for a few years- it will be damp. It needs all the windows open every day for a min of 10 mins ideally longer for several months. That will most likely solve all or most of the damp.

As you say it needs significant work I will assume it has proper lime plaster walls, this is good for you and the property.

Your challenge is the listing- you can’t change any fabric of the building without permission. So depending what you intend when you say the kitchen needs gutting, you may not be able to do what we’ve you have in mind. As standard you can repair you can’t replace without applying for LBC.
if you have more questions then happy to answer them, if you want to share the house details I’m happy to give further comments.

I bought my dream Victorian house. I absolutely loved the look of it but it was damp and an absolute money pit. We ended up moving. Heating costs were massive and there was ALWAYS something that needed doing. We moved to something a lot more practical. I still dream of owning an old house again some time but when I have a lot more time on my hands.

Also I must disagree that opening windows for ten minutes a day will stop the damp. Oh if it were that simple. Often old houses are just built with shallow foundations and no damp proof layer at all. Fireplaces and chimneys get blocked up which affect damp. Guttering and roof can cause damp. Planting at the side of the house too.

Dont. I live in a house with damp. Multiple dehumidifiers always on, can't dry washing on radiators, windows always open. Constant guilt it's making someone ill with the mould spores. Impossible to sell as its harder to hide but mega money to fix.

Do not buy.

100% agree! Of course closed-up, uninhabited houses need airing, but opening windows will not cure the cause of wet carpets and damp in the corners of every room.

Water ingress doesn’t automatically mean disaster - it could be caused by something as simple as the gutters being blocked, degraded fascias/soffits or some slipped roof tiles - and the damage can make the problem look more daunting than it actually is. But it could also mean the whole roof is shot, which is another ballgame entirely.

With a non-standard roofline (much more time consuming and expensive) and higher end period-appropriate materials like slate, you’re looking at £££.

At the very least, OP, I’d get a professional contractor to assess the cause and give an estimate for remedial work (+ 30% contingency) before even thinking about making an offer.

Yes, old houses are built to breathe. I’d and when they can’t is when you get damp. So in this situation there is very possibly a leaking pipe, gutter and all sorts, as well as the house having been uninhabited.

old houses do not need damp proofing, they need proper materials, by that I mean lime plaster, vapour permeable paint and so on. The issues are caused by using modern plaster, plastic paint and so on that trap moisture. I don’t think this house has these issues if it needs as much work as OP says.

Disagree with me as much as you want, my comments are factual and not opinion.

OP won’t be able to do any remedial work without permission. It’s not as simple as a few quotes. The property is listed so will require LBC before she does a thing.

If you want to do anything which isn't a like for like repair, for example changing the single glazed panels for double glazed or moving internal doors or wall, you will need listed buildings consent which is a Royal pain in the ass. If you do anything with consent which needed consent you can be made to put it back as it was regardless of the cost. If anyone has done anything dodgy already, the legal responsibility for putting it back as it was goes to you on purchase. It is not a small responsibility.

I wouldn't take on a listed building unless you know quite a bit about old building repair and maintainence.

If you share the listing people can give a more accurate view

I'd go round with a builder and see what they think. It might be a fairly easy fix.

My point was that she needs to have a rough idea of the kind of costs she may potentially be in for (which IME is a moveable feast anyway), before even making an offer. Not that she should just buy the house, ‘get a few quotes’ and crack on. Getting an estimate of possible expenses may automatically discount the property from consideration if nothing else.

Given that none of us have actually seen the house, every comment here is still just ‘opinion’ regardless of how knowledgeable you consider yourself.

OP would be better paying a Heritage consultant to go round with them or put on a pre planning app and going round with the local conservation officer. For a few hundred pounds that would be more beneficial than anything else if the property is a serious consideration. I certainly wouldn’t take some of that has something to sell and not necessarily the knowledge of this type of property.

We have put a rule that no listed houses. It's seriously frustrating because the only houses that fit our bill on the market ATM are listed. But it's just not worth it long-term. And if they won't sell now then they won't when you move either.

No. It’s a no. Think £2,000 for a heritage consultant’s input on the planning applications, plus £1,500 for an architect’s drawings to satisfy the listed buildings requirements, plus a 50% premium to builders to use materials which will meet the listed buildings team’s specifications….and that’s before you even tackle the actual damp work. I would never buy another listed building, and I’m a huge fan of historic houses. The costs are insane.

Most older houses (most houses in fact) will show signs of damp if left empty, unheated and unventilated for long periods. This can be something as simple as condensation, leaking gutters, junk leaning against external walls.

I've renovated many houses, some listed, many with initial signs of damp.

I'd avoid damp specialists - they will 99% of the time be wanting to sell you a solution. Get a general builder to look at the house and give their opinion.

My advice would be that you can certainly fix the damp. Doing up a house right now is expensive and getting trades people is a nightmare. Do you have experience of a large scale renovation. I've just finished a two year project and it will be my last - it will eat your life.

I wouldn't take a listed house with or without damp.

Damp is horrible but you can get on top of it.

The thing to give me pause is it's listed. I lived in a listed cottage and anything external had to be like for like and approved. This meant that our doors and windows were artisan made and fitted and cost an absolute fortune.

It would be a total money pit. Speaking as someone who is renovating a large Victorian house (which doesnt have damp).

It’s Listed - so you will need Listed Building Consent (Lbc). That doesn’t mean no changes are allowed but it does mean you have to act as custodian for the building rather than do what you want. Getting a proper survey by someone who knows about Listed Buildings is essential. Don’t go with the mortgage company. Either a conservation architect or surveyor. They will be able to comment on the likely cause of the damp and give an indication of how to solve it.

The thing is that after you’ve bought it, you may have to live in it as-is for 18-24 months while you get an architect to do your Lbc application and then wait for permission/go to tender and get building started. Pure repairs might happen more quickly. But don’t think this will be quick!

sounds wonderful tho - albeit not great to live in during the work….

Listed building that needs a load of work doing and will cost you a lot of money? Would swerve that like it was contagious, I'm afraid.

Sorry that no one is saying what you want to hear, but run a mile! It sounds like extending your existing property will make plenty of room and you don't need 5 bathrooms for 4 people. It will also add value, so if you see a refurb property down the line that you like, you will have more to put towards it.

Houses like this are serious money pits. If you have a lot of cash to chuck at it go for it otherwise it will be a nightmare.