Owning your own home

Ah, thanks. Could you perhaps PM me with a few details of the firms you spoke to? And did you eventually get one of those firms to do the job for you?

I'm only at the same stage as you, haven't actually progressed beyond a couple of quotes. These were one of the ones that quoted me about £500 https://www.hugginslaw.co.uk/

Finally exchanged this morning!

Completing / moving next Friday.... Argh.

Congratulations!

Where are you moving to?

Royston nr Cambridge.

Still working in London but moving closer to mine and the wife's families...

Used to live on tannery drift.

Nice!

We're going to be just off of Garden Walk...

Some good walking and cycling around.

You'll never leave!

Very good! Certainly the first time that reference has been made :')

Good butchers there...

Our survey came back a couple of weeks ago with a few things that need attention in the house we want to buy - as I posted about. Rewiring, new consumer unit, some small roofing repairs, some damp.

The estate agents got some damp specialists in, we got an electrician, and their quotes for "necessary works" totalled £18,000.

We asked for a reduction of the purchase price to take that into account - we genuinely can't afford to pay for that additional work, because we'd already had to set aside money for the work we could see needed doing - redecorating, new boiler, etc.

They have come back and said no: "Although they appreciate the fact that the wiring is old and requires updating, they feel that having already dropped a fair sum from the initial guide price."

What should we do now? Try to get at least some money off and put off the electrical stuff, and do that as and when? Hold firm and try to force it? It's not really a seller's market.

It's quite annoying because it's a nice place but we don't want to end up regretting buying it.

It doesn't all need to be done at once - houses take lots more time than you think - get other quotes.

Is the price you've previously agreed to pay £18k less than the original asking price?

What percentage of the total agreed purchase price is the additional works that you think need doing?

If it's like 2-5% then yeah the seller can tell you do to one without feeling like a total idiot.

If it's like 10-15% then yeah you'd have a case to keep arguing.

Actually more (£25k less, but it's still the most expensive house I've seen in the area, and Brexit etc.) - but that was based on our judgement of what it was worth, before we knew how much work was involved.

Park it until a week Monday? We might be totally fucked economically at that point, and therefore your house purchase should get cheaper. If not, you've not lost much time in the overall scheme of things.

We might lose our buyers (one of whom is Danish if Brexit is as bad as May is trying to make it.

You could say that your original offer was based on the market and similar properties (with examples) and you were unaware of these issues. They might say they’ve lived with it as it is and kept up maintenance/etc, what do you expect, it’s an old house.
It will help your case if any of it came back as dangerous or urgent - you could also split the list of works and drop parts with a lower priority to display pragmatism. After that you’re down to emotional pleading/threats to drop out.

Honestly the boat is too far out the harbour for that. He's made an offer, the survey has come back, there's some costs associated with the property and for that there are some rough quotes, but the vendor has said 'nah' when a further discount has been asked for.

Options right now:

• tell them what your final offer for the property is, which should more than initial offer minus 'putting right' costs, but not so much more that you feel like a mug, and not so much less than initial offer that you will make the vendor feel like they've been mugged.
  
• press eject button
  
• go quiet, hope they come crawling back
  
• pony up
  
  
  

Yes and no, I reckon there's still space to push for a calm compromise without going nuclear 'final offer' on them. Anyone coming in with £18k of 'necessary' work when it's a lived in house is going to cause a scene initially.

On another note, I finally reported the slight smell of gas outside our house and now we have been cut off whilst they install a new feed. Even more inconveniently, a water main in the area has burst so we have no water either!

The estate agents got some damp specialists in

Hmm...

Yeah. This concerned me too. Especially as 'damp specialists' tend to constantly misdiagnose damp as rising when it isn't because rising is more profitable.

Are you sure this isn't adding disproportionately to the bill?

Are you sure this isn't adding disproportionately to the bill?

I don't understand, as the vendor's EA, why you'd even offer to get a quote on repairs post survey, but if you did, you'd make damn sure that the quote coming back was low, right?!