Owning your own home

I guess it depends how at risk of flooding it is? I personally wouldn't buy a house actually at risk of flooding as 1) it would be shit if your house flooded and 2) if it does flood, flood risk increases, or insurers get less keen on flood risk after some big losses then potentially the cost goes up or you can't get insurance, which would suck...

I've used this bloke a few times before. Very old school but seems to know his stuff. Lists structural surveys on the website
https://sites.google.com/view/north-london-surveyor/home

It depends how at risk it is.

My house is shown as high risk from surface water flooding and low risk from the rivers and sea on here https://check-long-term-flood-risk.service.gov.uk/risk but realistically no houses in the area have ever come near flooding and I suspect the insurance reflects that.

I know of someone in York on the other hand with a house by the river that was pretty much uninsurable due to the actual regular flooding.

As others have said, try a few insurance companies to start and see what they say. Also, if you can, knock on a few people's doors nearby and say that you're thinking of buying and wondering if they have ever had a problem with flooding.

Thanks, that’s really useful. This place is the same, at high risk from surface water, but not from the river. I’ll keep digging

Does a google search, or facebook search crop up any photos? Usually a decent indicator as well.

Yeah, the whole area has had instances of flooding over the years at it’s a valley and major storms have overwhelmed the river and drains. I’ve been reading news reports and will be making contact with local flood action groups next to see what they say.

Frustratingly, the house is the other side of the road to the insane private park between Lowther and Duncombe which is residents-only.

Pfft, that doesn't even have a golf course.

The Chandos (pub almost opposite) has improved immeasurably in the past few years. Entirely serviceable now, which is a pleasant change from the grimness it was for years previously...

And let's not forget that it's walking distance from the Blythe Hill Tavern, the best pub in London.

I personally wouldn't buy a house actually at risk of flooding

Neither would I. From what I've found out so far it hasn't/doesn't flood, but is in an area that's generally at risk.

It's probably a non starter, but it's really nice and want to be sure before giving up.

Elevated above the river? The searches for mine flagged sea and river flood risk, but if it ever actually did, I think there might be more pressing concerns. Like the fact that the entire town became Atlantis.

This is the place -

https://www.zoopla.co.uk/for-sale/details/59820261

The bottom of the garden runs alongside the river, but the house is higher (about 10 feet above at a guess).

If it's that one you might get some run down the hill I guess, but looks a little way above the river. A Boscastle/Lynmouth type event? Personally wouldn't be worried, but it's not my money. Really lovely place, though what's going on with that lounge behind the shop front. Rank carpet?

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very nice that. love the suntrap garden

I was there on Saturday. It's a great pub.

outrageous pro-catford content itt

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Is there a rough 'how big a rooflight can i put in here' based on the size of a roof (if not just a case of how much you pay to add extra support to the roof.)

Internally the room is 2.6m wide and 2.1m deep, will soon have twinned steel beams at the top once the inside wall is coming down to open the room into the dining room.
Wanted to have as big a window as possible, circa 1.4*1.4m, but roofer has suggested 0.8*1m, possibly a touch bigger based on roof size.

Don't want to sound like I'm calling him out/know what I'm doing - just curious about what the margins are.

Second batch of dickheads pulled out of buying our place, no feedback, just an offer and then rescinded a month later. So so so so so exhausted by it.

That’s fucking massive, area great tho

annoying. is that just people putting in offers on multiple places to hedge their bets? I’m fairly certain in the scottish system you’d be liable for remarketing costs if you pulled out after offer acceptance - not 100% sure tho

edit: https://hastingslegal.co.uk/renege-on-purchase/

You can have all of the roof as glass if you want (and can afford it). Ask the structural engineer who is designing the steel beams

Ta, will give him a try.

I think you've got to take a general view.

We're near a flood zone and a water management system that runs into a brook. Zurich wouldn't insure due to proximity as the crow flys. Other insurers have been fine. We're a lot higher than the area at risk and as the water management, is... well... managed if it gets to the point that we're flooded we're going to have much greater concerns.

All that said I definitely would never risk being anywhere close to a standing body of water and would always buy on higher ground. Weather is going to get more extreme. Flooding is going to get more common and extreme. Anyone buying near a body of water or in a flood zone should expect that their basement/ground floor and all the objects get destroyed, and be prepared to be uninsurable and that their home could be unsaleable.

This. You also can't rely on distance above moving water anymore, the water table becomes too saturated. A friends place had a stream trickle (3m below) breach their ground floor last year, madness.

Very good price, almost meat free too? We have same (lower) oven for 4 years now, been great, gets hot, cooks food, doesn't have the self cleaning nuclear melt down temp feature that one of the other bosch's .

almost meat free too?

Hah, we got a new one coming anyway, still annoyed but hey ho, spend a long time destroying the kitchen which is oddly therapeutic.

The rubbish however is not.

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