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The Essential Guide » E Zine » Issue 1 - 10 Tips For Buying a House to Renovate
Ten tips for buying a house to renovate
What to watch for:
1) HORIZONTAL CRACKS IN THE BRICKWORK OR RENDER: These can be a sign of wall tie failure and can be expensive to repair (little circles of patching in the render or brickwork can be a sign that the wall ties have been replaced)
2) VERTICAL CRACKS OR CRACKS FOLLOWING THE JOINTS OF BRICKWORK / BLOCKWORK: Can be a sign of settlement. The foundations may have cracked and failed allowing the walls to settle at different rates, causing cracking. This can be a major problem needing “underpinning” works to fix it.
3) GAPS UNDER PARTS OF THE SKIRTING BOARDS: Another sign of “differential settlement”. – It could be that the floor slab is settling in one area and not another, or it could be that the foundations have failed.
4) WOODWORM: Where there are timber floors, ask if you can pull up the corners of a couple of carpets to look to see if there are small round holes in the timber. – If there are this could be woodworm. – It is treatable, depending on how bad it is, but you are better knowing it’s there.
5) DRY ROT: This is a fungal infestation that can be serious and expensive to fix. – Look for flaking or soft timber, or staining on the surface. – Again look under carpets where you can
6) CRACKS IN GLAZING: This can be a sign that the lintel above has failed. – If it has, then the weight from the wall above starts to act on the window frame and can crack the glass. – To check if it is lintel failure, if there is an opening window; see if it opens ok, or if the weight on the frame is stopping it.
7) RISING DAMP: Look out for dark patches on the walls, usually up to 2’6” – 3’0” from the floor which could indicate dampness. – This could indicate that either there is no damp proof course (DPC), or that there is one but it has failed. – There are numerous ways to solve the problem, but all of them are quite expensive
8) HOLLOW RENDER: Some rendered houses suffer from the render “blowing off”. This can be caused by moisture getting behind the render through cracks and then freezing and expanding or through an incorrect mix when the render was applied. – To fix it, you will need to hack off the affected area and re render. – An expensive task, usually requiring scaffolding
9) GLAZING PROBLEMS: Check that the double glazing has not got moisture between the sheets of glass. – This can be caused by the seals failing and usually means replacement will be required.
10) LEAKS: Check for damp patches on walls, floors and ceilings which could suggest leaks within the plumbing system. Repair could mean floors and ceilings having to be taken up.
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