Hi there, hope someone can help us!

We have just had a full survey for a house we are supposed to be buying. 
It's looking rather scary, and I was looking for a little advice.

The roof was re-roofed with concrete tiles, at some point. They are too 
heavy for the structure to support, and so the roof needs re-inforcing. 
Apparently the one beam up there that takes the weight is rather bowing. 
There also has to be an investigation to see if the struts are mechanically 
tied to the walls.

There is a lot of damp, and this needs to be treated by us if there is not a 
damp proof-course that is under guarantee. And there is also a possibility 
that the property needs rewiring.

We have no idea how much this will all cost, how long it'll take, and 
suspect we can't afford it. Does anyone have any ideas of costings for any 
of the above work? A ball-park figure is all we are after. Don't really want 
to pull out of the sale, as we love the house, but the roof problem is very 
worrying.

Thanks,

Toast.

"Head of Toast"  wrote in message
news:d5cvs2$gvu$1@nwrdmz03.dmz.ncs.ea.ibs-infra.bt.com...

> Hi there, hope someone can help us!
>
> We have just had a full survey for a house we are supposed to be buying.
> It's looking rather scary, and I was looking for a little advice.
>
> The roof was re-roofed with concrete tiles, at some point. They are too
> heavy for the structure to support, and so the roof needs re-inforcing.
> Apparently the one beam up there that takes the weight is rather bowing.
> There also has to be an investigation to see if the struts are
mechanically
> tied to the walls.
>
> There is a lot of damp, and this needs to be treated by us if there is not
a
> damp proof-course that is under guarantee. And there is also a possibility
> that the property needs rewiring.
>
> We have no idea how much this will all cost, how long it'll take, and
> suspect we can't afford it. Does anyone have any ideas of costings for any
> of the above work? A ball-park figure is all we are after. Don't really
want
> to pull out of the sale, as we love the house, but the roof problem is
very
> worrying.


Negotiate with the seller
they probably will accept the findings and compromise
afterall, the next buyer will do the same if they have a similar survey
Total rewire depending upon house size  1200 -  2000
--
Vass

I agree, get money off the price of the house. The problems you have listed
are going into the thousands. If it has damp you have more to worry about
than putting in a dpc...what about mending everything affected by the damp
already...plastering etc.

Get some local quotes, quickly...then speak to the agents..the people
selling will probably already know they have problems, and if the sale is a
certain way through they will drop rather than lose the house they want to
buy....

Remember its a buyers market, so you are in control!!

Lloyd
"Head of Toast"  wrote in message
news:d5cvs2$gvu$1@nwrdmz03.dmz.ncs.ea.ibs-infra.bt.com...

> Hi there, hope someone can help us!
>
> We have just had a full survey for a house we are supposed to be buying.
> It's looking rather scary, and I was looking for a little advice.
>
> The roof was re-roofed with concrete tiles, at some point. They are too
> heavy for the structure to support, and so the roof needs re-inforcing.
> Apparently the one beam up there that takes the weight is rather bowing.
> There also has to be an investigation to see if the struts are
mechanically
> tied to the walls.
>
> There is a lot of damp, and this needs to be treated by us if there is not
a
> damp proof-course that is under guarantee. And there is also a possibility
> that the property needs rewiring.
>
> We have no idea how much this will all cost, how long it'll take, and
> suspect we can't afford it. Does anyone have any ideas of costings for any
> of the above work? A ball-park figure is all we are after. Don't really
want
> to pull out of the sale, as we love the house, but the roof problem is
very
> worrying.
>
> Thanks,
>
> Toast.
>
>
>

"Head of Toast"  wrote in message 
news:d5cvs2$gvu$1@nwrdmz03.dmz.ncs.ea.ibs-infra.bt.com...

> Hi there, hope someone can help us!
>
> We have just had a full survey for a house we are supposed to be buying. 
> It's looking rather scary, and I was looking for a little advice.
>
> The roof was re-roofed with concrete tiles, at some point. They are too 
> heavy for the structure to support, and so the roof needs re-inforcing. 
> Apparently the one beam up there that takes the weight is rather bowing. 
> There also has to be an investigation to see if the struts are 
> mechanically tied to the walls.
>
> There is a lot of damp, and this needs to be treated by us if there is not 
> a damp proof-course that is under guarantee. And there is also a 
> possibility that the property needs rewiring.
>
> We have no idea how much this will all cost, how long it'll take, and 
> suspect we can't afford it. Does anyone have any ideas of costings for any 
> of the above work? A ball-park figure is all we are after. Don't really 
> want to pull out of the sale, as we love the house, but the roof problem 
> is very worrying.
>


Hi, HoT - day off for the election?

Not an answer to your "how much" question, just some advice - and sorry if 
this sounds a bit elaborate...

1.    Don't fall in love with it until you move in - otherwise you'll have a 
weaker bargaining position

2.    Exploit your strong position cos, as Vass says, the vendor will have 
the same problem with any other prospective purchaser.

3.    Decide what you think the house will be worth once all the work is 
done properly = A

4.    Get 3 professional, written quotes for the work = B from local firms 
with good reputations (vendor will need to allow access for inspections etc, 
make sure you're present, too), Get builder's estimate of time needed (and 
add a bit), and explain you want a price to allow for the inclusion of 
penalty clauses on the builder's contract (but the builder will have vacant 
access, which should help him a bit).

5.    Accept it's going to be much easier to delay moving until ALL the work 
is completed.

6.    Work out the cost of delaying the move = C  -  this will include the 
cost of interest (on both your mortgage and on the deposit you'll be 
paying), council tax, insurance, fuel and any other similar costs which you 
will incur by buying the house but not being able to move in until the work 
is completed.

7.    Negotiate with vendor - but DON'T offer more than A - B - C.  (and 
check if your figure is close to a Stamp Duty threshold point)

The vendor may not like it - but because he will know how you're arriving at 
the figure, and the problems he could have finding another willing 
purchaser, he should be sensible enough to accept.

Keep your solicitor informed of what you're doing, and (if and) when you're 
ready to exchange contracts, set a completion date that the builder can 
commit to and sign up with the builder accordingly.

A few don'ts - don't try to do the work yourself, unless you're sure you 
have skills, time, and had a pro assess everything that's needed.  Don't be 
afraid to walk away - there's loads more houses but once you've signed up 
you've committed your finances.

Good luck...

-- 
Martin

(Remove barrier to reply)

On Thu, 5 May 2005 11:25:54 +0000 (UTC), a particular chimpanzee named
"Head of Toast"  randomly hit the
keyboard and produced:


>We have just had a full survey for a house we are supposed to be buying. 
>It's looking rather scary, and I was looking for a little advice.
>
>The roof was re-roofed with concrete tiles, at some point. They are too 
>heavy for the structure to support, and so the roof needs re-inforcing. 
>Apparently the one beam up there that takes the weight is rather bowing. 
>There also has to be an investigation to see if the struts are mechanically 
>tied to the walls.
>
>There is a lot of damp, and this needs to be treated by us if there is not a 
>damp proof-course that is under guarantee. And there is also a possibility 
>that the property needs rewiring.


You have to read the survey carefully.  They are written in such a way
as to cover the surveyor's behind.  It's very unlikely that a general
surveyor would give a definite opinion that the roof structure _must_
be reinforced; I'd expect him to pass the buck to.. sorry I should
have said, recommend you employ a structural engineer.

See google for opinions from this group and uk.d-i-y as to the
usefulness of damp-proof courses (and surveyors who use damp-meters to
make such judgements).  WRT the electrics, there's a possibility that
_any_ property needs rewiring.  Unless there's something specific,
then this is another vague comment.

How old is the property?  Any house more than a few years old will
eventually need _some_ work, and I would suggest that if the points
above are all that have been found in a pre-1970's house, then I don't
think you've got too much to worry about.
-- 
Hugo Nebula
  "If no-one on the internet wants a piece of this,
   just how far from the pack have you strayed?"

"Head of Toast"  wrote in message
news:d5cvs2$gvu$1@nwrdmz03.dmz.ncs.ea.ibs-infra.bt.com...

> Hi there, hope someone can help us!
>
> We have just had a full survey for a house we are supposed to be buying.
> It's looking rather scary, and I was looking for a little advice.
>
> The roof was re-roofed with concrete tiles, at some point. They are too
> heavy for the structure to support, and so the roof needs re-inforcing.
> Apparently the one beam up there that takes the weight is rather bowing.
> There also has to be an investigation to see if the struts are
mechanically
> tied to the walls.
>
> There is a lot of damp, and this needs to be treated by us if there is not
a
> damp proof-course that is under guarantee. And there is also a possibility
> that the property needs rewiring.
>
> We have no idea how much this will all cost, how long it'll take, and
> suspect we can't afford it. Does anyone have any ideas of costings for any
> of the above work? A ball-park figure is all we are after. Don't really
want
> to pull out of the sale, as we love the house, but the roof problem is
very
> worrying.
>
> Thanks,
>
> Toast.


I cant comment on the damp or the electrics, the roof yes.  To reactifiy the
sag in the roof the concrete tiles, lath and felt will have to be taken off
to release the whight. All the roof spars released from the centre beam. New
centre beams inserted. The size of the new beams will be determined by the
BCI recomenations. You may have to put two beams  in both front and rear
elevations. they also have to be brick in at each end for support, just
bolting new to old not allowed. The whole lot renailed, refelted lath and re
tiled.

Cost dependes on roof area. Could be from  4000 to 8000.

keith_765 wrote:

> "Head of Toast"  wrote in message
> news:d5cvs2$gvu$1@nwrdmz03.dmz.ncs.ea.ibs-infra.bt.com...
> > Hi there, hope someone can help us!
> >
> > We have just had a full survey for a house we are supposed to be
buying.
> > It's looking rather scary, and I was looking for a little advice.
> >
> > The roof was re-roofed with concrete tiles, at some point. They are
too
> > heavy for the structure to support, and so the roof needs
re-inforcing.
> > Apparently the one beam up there that takes the weight is rather
bowing.
> > There also has to be an investigation to see if the struts are
> mechanically
> > tied to the walls.
> >
> > There is a lot of damp, and this needs to be treated by us if there
is not
> a
> > damp proof-course that is under guarantee. And there is also a
possibility
> > that the property needs rewiring.
> >
> > We have no idea how much this will all cost, how long it'll take,
and
> > suspect we can't afford it. Does anyone have any ideas of costings
for any
> > of the above work? A ball-park figure is all we are after. Don't
really
> want
> > to pull out of the sale, as we love the house, but the roof problem
is
> very
> > worrying.
> >
> > Thanks,
> >
> > Toast.
>
> I cant comment on the damp or the electrics, the roof yes.  To
reactifiy the
> sag in the roof the concrete tiles, lath and felt will have to be
taken off
> to release the whight. All the roof spars released from the centre
beam. New
> centre beams inserted. The size of the new beams will be determined
by the
> BCI recomenations. You may have to put two beams  in both front and
rear
> elevations. they also have to be brick in at each end for support,
just
> bolting new to old not allowed. The whole lot renailed, refelted lath
and re
> tiled.
>
> Cost dependes on roof area. Could be from £ 4000 to £8000.


I doubt it. Merely reinforcing whats there should in most cases be
adequate. But if its sagging by a foot or so, you might be quite right.


NT

Head of Toast wrote:


> Hi there, hope someone can help us!
>
> We have just had a full survey for a house we are supposed to be
buying.
> It's looking rather scary, and I was looking for a little advice.
>
> The roof was re-roofed with concrete tiles, at some point. They are
too
> heavy for the structure to support, and so the roof needs

re-inforcing.

I think 'need' is the word we should focus on. Need it in order to
achieve what? To meet the latest OTT building regs, or to ensure it
stays up? Very different things. For all I know it might not need
anything doing.



> Apparently the one beam up there that takes the weight is rather

bowing.

how long is it, and how much bend? 1"? 12"?



> There also has to be an investigation to see if the struts are
mechanically
> tied to the walls.


why? People dont normally investigate that when they buy a house. What
problem has been found that warrants that?



> There is a lot of damp,


woah. Firstly diagnosis of non existant damp is routine, so first we
need to know if there really is damp or not. What signs of a damp
problem are there?

Only then does one go on to work out what the cause is, then how to
treat it.



> and this needs to be treated by us if there is not a
> damp proof-course that is under guarantee.


Well if theres damp it will need treating by you either way. A
guaranteed dpc wont help you much.

Since youre talking about guaraneed, and therefore most likely injected
dpcs, and concrete tiles replacing slates, I guess we're talking
Victorian. The sort of findings you report are not unusual in Vic
houses. But more to the point here, solving damp probs has nothing to
do with injecting a dpc. More on that later.



> And there is also a possibility
> that the property needs rewiring.


means nothing, please be specific as to the problems found. Does your
survey even cover the wiring? Or have you found a problem? etc.



> We have no idea how much this will all cost, how long it'll take, and

> suspect we can't afford it. Does anyone have any ideas of costings
for any
> of the above work? A ball-park figure is all we are after. Don't
really want
> to pull out of the sale, as we love the house, but the roof problem
is very
> worrying.


Youre making too many assumptions already. Need to first establish if
any of the above is a genuine problem. Without doing that first, youre
just spinning your wheels.

Damp diagnosis and treatment in Victorian houses:
http://www.periodproperty.co.uk/cgi-bin/discussing/forum2.pl

And if it is Victorian, an important question is: is it rendered?


NT

I'm interested to know if you have made any headway with your problem. I have the same problems with my house, a victorian terrace in Nottingham. The seller had replaced slate tiles with cement ones which were weighing the roof down and pushing out the wall at the front, which had a visible but slight bow under the eaves. I had steel braces put in to stop any further movement outwards, at a cost of £400, and went ahead and bought the house because I loved it. Three years later I find that the braces are not fixed to the rear elevation, and are therefore useless at present. The builder who did the job (recommended by the estate agents who handled the sale) has today come back to recce, and will return to 'rectify' the problem. I do not believe he will do this properly as he has talked some flannel basically, and I am going to have to wade through some big problems to sort it out properly. Houses like this (built in 1904) will inevitably have some movement/problems, but they can be sorted, but it will cost. The payoff is not living in some horrible, flimsy-walled, characterless, no-loft-space new build!

The house had damp. I had the rot treated and a damp course put in. Sorted.


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"ruth"  wrote in message 
news:8ad414396e5a4dc595d123bc783aa2ce@ureader.com...
I'm interested to know if you have made any headway with your problem. I 
have the same problems with my house, a victorian terrace in Nottingham. The 
seller had replaced slate tiles with cement ones which were weighing the 
roof down and pushing out the wall at the front, which had a visible but 
slight bow under the eaves. I had steel braces put in to stop any further 
movement outwards, at a cost of 400, and went ahead and bought the house 
because I loved it. Three years later I find that the braces are not fixed 
to the rear elevation, and are therefore useless at present. The builder who 
did the job (recommended by the estate agents who handled the sale) has 
today come back to recce, and will return to 'rectify' the problem. I do not 
believe he will do this properly as he has talked some flannel basically, 
and I am going to have to wade through some big problems to sort it out 
properly. Houses like this (built in 1904) will inevitably have some 
movement/problems, but they can be sorted, but it will cost. The payoff is 
not living in some horrible, flimsy-walled, characterless, no-loft-space new 
build!

The house had damp. I had the rot treated and a damp course put in. Sorted.
***


After another few specialist surveys, it loks as if we have work worth about 
4k to do. Waiting for the final builder's quote. Then we have to negotiate 
with the vendor, as we can't afford to pay that with the asking price the 
way it is!

Toast.


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