I'm completely on the fence about pressing on or pulling out and we're now at the stage where we have to make a decision because the the sellers are receiving pressure from their onward chain. Both me and my girlfriend are completely on the fence, which to me is a bad thing, or maybe we're just too cautious?
I mentioned some of the issues earlier in the thread, but for context we had an offer accepted on a 3 bed extended semi @ £274k back in July (it was up for OIEO £280k). It became apparent that the single storey side extension (formally the garage now the kitchen) has no planning permission. We received the building survey report towards the end of October and it indicated that the extension is only built out of a single skin of brickwork, so would need to be corrected in the form of adding a second skin with suitable insulation etc. There are also some other issues, some of immediate concern with the majority kinda standard for a house of that age (1930's-1950's), which I'll summarise further down.
It turns out that the sellers also had a building survey completed 5 years ago so they knew about the issues surrounding the extension, but because it's not falling down they chose to live with it (the extension is approximately 30-40 years old). We organised for two contractors who specialise in extensions to visit the house last week, both of which said that knocking it down and rebuilding would be the best option (obviously) - this would ensure it has planning permission/approval, therefore presenting no issue when we come to sell in the future. Remedial works in terms of ripping out the kitchen, removing plaster, adding a second timber or brick skin (if the foundations support it) and changing the roof from a flat one to pitched, might be possible. However, without assessing the foundations it's hard to tell if they can support the load from a second skin and new pitched roof. Knocking it down and rebuilding is the sensible but likely more costly option.
We are still waiting for formal quotations back from the contractors, but the sellers have already offered to reduce the asking price by £24,000, which is obviously quite a significant drop. This is the maximum they can afford to reduce by in order to still afford their house in the chain.
Some of the other issues highlighted in the survey:
1. Porch flat roof has failed and has leaked in the past (minor damage to the ceiling inside) - £250-500
2. Positive damp readings on 4 walls in 3 separate rooms - 2 of which are likely to be down to the porch (as it's in the hallway next to it) and the extension (as it's in the dining area next to it) - cost unknown
3. Minor brickwork repointing works - £250-500
4. One possibly two lintel supports to the rear elevation first floor windows need replacing - £500-1000
5. Raising the existing damp proofing in multiple areas - £500-1000
6. Lifted flashing on chimney stack - £100
7. Venting and capping the dis-used chimney - £500
8. Minor corrections to guttering and introducing a new fall pipe - £200
9. Replacing the window unit in the inside porch door as the glazing has failed - unknown
10. Decorative works and upgrades to soffit boarding at eaves level - £500
There are some other minor items like a missing smoke detector, loose electrical socket, vegetation on the roof/chimney which needs removing and upgrading an overflow pipe, but all superficial or something we can sort at relatively inexpensive cost.
It ticks all of our boxes in terms of size, rooms, garden and driveway. The location and proximity to amenities/transport links/schools near enough perfect. It's also well within budget at the reduced price and because the bank valued the house at £274k, it looks like we could end up with way more equity further down the line. After a few months of keeping an eye on Rightmove we haven't seen anything that ticks all of the same boxes at the same original asking price. A couple of houses came close, but either the location was a bit off or something else wasn't right.
The showstopper is obviously the extension and to a lesser extent the damp. The other issues add up to a few grand but I feel the majority of them are non-immediate in nature and should be expected with a house of this age. It's looking like the reduction will cover the extension and go some way to the other issues. We'll have around £11k extra liquid cash in the bank as a result of the changes to the mortgage deal, which will go some way to covering the issues and a big chunk of the extension, but we'll need to save, remortgage or take out a loan in the future to cover the rest.
The extension is a big task to take on for a first time buyer, but the net effect is that we'll end up with a new extension built to modern standards with a kitchen designed exactly how we want. It's a downside of the house that can be resolved by throwing money at it.
I honestly don't know what to do.
Floor plan:
. Gardens a great size too. Only down side is the rear is north facing but the garden is so long (~50m) that you would be able to get seating areas in the sun if you lile
