So you found your dream home, but it turns out that it needs to be underpinned. What now? We tell you all you need to know about buying a house that needs underpinning in this article.
Underpinning is one of the words buyers dread, because it has so many implications, not least costs. But that shouldn’t put you off buying your dream home.
However, it’s important that you know what you let yourself in for so that you can make the right decision for you. Because if the property you want to buy is in need of underpinning, there are things to consider.
But don’t worry, in this article we will tell you all the things you need to know before if you are looking at buying a property that needs underpinning.
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What is underpinning?
Let’s start with the basics and find out what it mean if a home needs underpinning. The term describes the renovation or construction to strengthen a building’s current foundation to make it safe.
It becomes necessary when the foundations are deemed to have failed, so that the building is no longer safe. The process usually means excavating soil from beneath the property to the point where the soil is capable of supporting the property.
Then concrete is poured in to create stable foundations. This is method is called mass concrete underpinning and is the most commonly used one.
While our property didn’t need underpinning, we decide to do some work to strengthen the retaining wall next to the property as a precaution.
We used this underpinning technique where we dug a big hole next to the wall and filled it with concrete. This had the effect of ensuring the property didn’t subside any further.
Another method is to insert a reinforced concrete beam to take the weight of the building and make it safe again. It’s seen as a more advanced method.
Finally, there is the method of mini-piled underpinning, which is used when the soil quality is poor or access is difficult. Rather than excavating the existing foundations, hollow steel piles are screwed below them. They are then filled with concrete or grout.
As you can see, it’s not a small job so it’s important that you are fully comfortable with this before you buy the property.
Another thing to know is that you have to apply to the local building authority if you need to underpin your home. Building regulations have to be met.
Things to consider before buying a house that needs underpinning
Because underpinning is such a big job, it’s not something you should enter into lightly. The last thing you want is your dream home turning into a nightmare.
So here are the things you should consider before signing on the dotted line.
1. Does it really need underpinning?
The chances are, your homebuyers report told you that there are signs of subsidence and that it’s likely that the property therefore needs underpinning. Or you might have spotted some bigger cracks which led you to the believe underpinning is necessary.
Well, hold your horses! Neither of the above means that the property really needs to be underpinned. So first, make sure that it’s actually the case.
In our experience, homebuyers report tend to be quite cautious with surveyors keen to cover their backs. The first thing to do is get a structural survey done by a structural engineer. They will be able to tell you if underpinning is necessary or not for definite.
When we found our dream home the homebuyers report indicated there was subsidence and the property probably needed underpinning.
We had a structural survey carried out and the surveyor said the movement was long-standing and non-progressive and that underpinning wasn’t necessary. Therefore our experience shows a structural survey is well worth the money!
Structural surveyors are specialists in subsidence and often back their advice with legal guarantees. The key words you’re looking for is that the any subsidence is ‘not-significant’ and ‘non-progressive’ or ‘historical’.
2. Establish the cause
There are a range of reasons why underpinning may be necessary, for example, the property’s original foundation may no longer be stable or strong enough to support the property.
This could be because of the soil the building was built on or because the house was extended upwards, making the foundations no longer suitable.
Subsidence is the most common reason why a property might need to be underpinned. The structural engineer will be able to tell you what the reason is.
But why is it important to know the reason? Well, because while underpinning might solve the problem in the short-term, depending on the root cause, it might not solve it once and for all.
For example, if the reason is subsidence that is still ongoing, underpinning won’t solve it permanently. If the building continues to move, eventually, the foundations will become unstable again. It might take years, but it’ll happen.
The structural engineer will be able to tell you if it’s likely that underpinning will solve the problem in the long-run or not.
If it doesn’t, you have to decide if you still want to go ahead with the purchase or walk away.
3. Costs and upheaval
As we have said, underpinning a property is a big job that can cost a lot of money and disrupt the life of the people living in the building.
How much it costs will depend on how much work there is to do, which method is used and how easily the area can be accessed. The longer and more difficult the work the more expensive it will get.
You have to expect to pay between £1,000 and £2,800 per square meter, depending on the method used. So the bigger your property, the more it will cost.
Make sure you get several quotes from reputable firms so that you get the best people for the best price.
Once you know how much it might cost you, it’s decision time: can you afford to buy the house and carry out this work? It might be possible to renegotiate the price, given the additional costs you are facing.
The other consideration is the upheaval and disruption such work would cause. It can take several weeks for the job to be complete. Depending on how invasive the work is, you might not be able to live there during the time.
But even if you can, it will be noisy and dusty. Can you deal with that? It’s another consideration to think about before buying a house that needs underpinning.
4. Impact on mortgage and insurance
Next you need to consider the impact buying a home that needs to be underpinned will have on your ability to get a mortgage or insurance.
If a house needs underpinning due to subsidence, most lenders will consider it as unmortgageable due to the risk involved for the lender. This is probably the biggest challenge for any buyer looking to buy a property that needs to be underpinned.
While it’s not impossible to get a mortgage, as there are specialist lenders that lend on such properties, it’s worth discussing your options with an independent mortgage broker. They will know the market and where to go.
It’s worth mentioning though that such as a specialist mortgage is likely to cost you much more.
The other challenge is getting buildings insurance. Most standard insurers won’t be willing to insure your property if it needs underpinning. So again, you would need to go to specialist insurers, which would cost you more money.
An independent insurance broker will be able to find insurers that will insure properties that need underpinning.
These additional costs will be there long-term, because even after you have carried out the work, you might continue to have to pay higher mortgage rates and insurance payments.
While most insurers will be happy to insure our property as long as a structural surveyor has checked it and deemed the building as safe, the insurance payment will be higher.
Lenders will want to ensure that the underpinning has been done by a reputable firm and to a high standard. The type of underpinning will also play a part, because some methods are seen as better than others in the view of lenders.
So make sure you take these extra costs into account before making your decision.
5. Selling a house that’s been underpinned
The last thing you are thinking about now is selling the house, we get it. But at some point you are likely to sell it and it’s good to think of that moment too.
Because you’ll have to declare that the property has been underpinned and this could put off some buyers. Even if the building is now safe and a structural engineer has confirmed this, some people won’t want to buy an underpinned house.
Partly, that’s because underpinning has such a bad reputation. It’s one of those things that strikes fear into buyers hearts. But there are also the practical reasons we have already discussed.
It’s more difficult and expensive to get a mortgage and buildings insurance on a property that has been underpinned. The more recent the underpinning took place the more of a problem it is, so if you are not planning on selling in the next 5-10 years, it might not impact you as much.
But nonetheless, it could reduce the pool of buyers that are willing to consider your home, which will impact on how quickly you can sell your home.
And the value of your home could also be impacted, as an underpinned home is valued 20% to 25% less by some estimates.
While this factor alone shouldn’t put you off buying your dream home if all the others are taken into account, it’s worth considering it.
You have to be sure before buying a house that needs underpinning
If you have found your dream home, but it needs underpinning, don’t walk away immediately. It’s worth to dig a bit deeper and get the whole picture before you make a decision.
As our experience has shown, the mere mention of ‘subsidence’ or ‘needs underpinning’ shouldn’t make you panic. It can turn out to be nothing more than a false alarm, so take the time to find out for sure before you decide what to do.
If we had just taken the word of the homebuyers report we wouldn’t have bought our dream home! Thankfully, the structural engineer eased all our concerns and we never had a problem.
However, there are quite a few considerations to take into account and you should only be buying that property if you feel happy and comfortable with all of them.
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