r/UKRealEstate

Solicitors uncovered a historic subsidence issue dating to 2011 which was settled by insurance in 2016 and a certificate of structural adequacy issued. Property was partially underpinned and the cause (vegetation or trees) were removed and leaky drains rectified.

Survey has not flagged any ongoing issues.

Question 1: what is an appropriate discount to fair market value of such a property or price reduction we should ask for since this was not disclosed?

2: How much will it affect saleability when we would like to sell several years later

3: if a subsidence or other structural issue were to recur unfortunately, will there be any buyers if we chose to sell? How would it impact property values?

2

Hi all, looking for some advice as I’m feeling quite overwhelmed and unsure what the smartest next step is.
My partner and I moved into a rental property in
Manchester in December 2025 (£1,800pcm AST).

Within days of moving in we started noticing major issues which we reported almost immediately, including:
Damp and black mould
Intermittent electrical tripping/RCD issues
Structural opening to the basement
Rotting external timber/windows
Plumbing leaks
Toilet issues
Strong damp/urine smell from carpets and flooring
We raised concerns very early and have everything documented by email and WhatsApp.

Over the past 2–3 months, the agency has now admitted there is:
-A failed DPC (damp proof course). The landlord refuses to pay for it.
-Significant basement damp
-Potential need for tanking works
-Electrical remedial works / possible kitchen rewire
-Window replacement works
-They are now arranging works, but it has taken months to get to this stage.

One thing that’s really upset me is the flooring situation. We repeatedly reported damp and strong odour issues affecting the carpets. Eventually we lifted part of the carpet and discovered damp floorboards and mould beneath the floor structure directly above the cellar.
We also placed a framed picture in the cellar around 2 months ago and it now looks badly affected by damp/moisture already.

The agency/landlord are now saying they won’t reimburse us for any remedial costs we incurred ourselves because the works weren’t “approved”, even though we only carried out minor mitigation works after delays in response.
They’ve also now offered us the option to exit the tenancy early.
Part of me feels relieved, but another part of me feels like it’s a “get out of jail free card” for the landlord/agency after we’ve spent months living with the issues, paying full rent, and dealing with the stress and disruption.

For context:

We have continued paying rent throughout
Rent has been paid under protest
We have cooperated with all inspections and contractor access
The landlord/agency are now carrying out significant remedial works

My questions are:
-Would you accept an early surrender and move on?
- is it realistic to seek compensation/reimbursement first?
- is Environmental Health worth involving at this stage?
- Has anyone successfully negotiated compensation + early exit together?
- Does the carpet situation sound defensible given the damp/mould evidence underneath?

Trying to approach this calmly and properly, but honestly the unpredictability of it all has really affected my anxiety.
Any advice appreciated.

I bought a fixer-upper flat in Glasgow Southside almost two years ago. This is a three bedroom tenement flat, valued at the time slightly under market value (£180K).

Pretty much everything needed done when we moved in. Since then we’ve rewired the whole place, repaired and painted all the walls, installed a built-in wardrobe for extra storage (there was basically none), and renovated the kitchen because it was barely functional.

We’ll probably move out in a couple of years as we’d like somewhere bigger, so we’re trying to figure out what improvements are actually worth doing before selling.

The bathroom is usable but definitely dated. At a minimum, we’re planning to repaint where needed, replace the awful black floor tiles, reseal around the shower tray, and change the shower head. The bigger issue is that the layout is awkward and not very functional, so I’ve considered replacing the shower tray with a smaller one to improve the space. But that obviously increases the cost quite a bit, and I’m not sure it would add enough value to justify it.

I’ve also read that wood-burning stoves can increase property value by around 3–6%. We’re top floor and currently have an old gas fire that came with the flat, but we never use it. We’re debating either removing the fireplace altogether and using the alcove for storage/display space, or installing a wood-burning stove instead.

So I’m wondering: if you had to choose between improving the bathroom layout or installing a wood-burning stove, which do you think would add more value (or appeal) when selling? Or are neither really worth the investment?

I knew buying a house in the UK would be expensive, but I genuinely didn’t realise how many extra costs get added on top of the deposit.

Every time I thought I had a rough budget figured out, there was something else to account for. Solicitor fees, surveys, mortgage fees, removals, stamp duty… it just keeps going.

What surprised me most is how difficult it is to find a straight answer on what the total upfront cost might actually look like. Most sites only focus on the deposit and monthly payments.

Curious if other people here underestimated the upfront costs too or if I was just naive going into this process.

Update: I was recently suggested TrueHomeCosts, a UK home buying cost calculator that includes deposit and other upfront fees like legal and moving costs. Has anyone here used something like this before?

I am in the process of selling my late parents house in England and do not have any recent experience of what is involved. I am at the stage of looking for Solicitors to handle the conveyancing. I have asked for a few ultra but what do I need to look out for and what hidden costs can I expect them to miss? If a job needs doing I don’t object to paying them but I hate to be surprised by something.
I had similar experiences with Estate Agencies that would confidently tell me ’that price covers everything’ only to find extra costs they hadn’t included. I just want to avoid the frustration.
Thanks

I'm researching the UK planning permission process. For anyone who has been through the ordeal, what are the most frustrating parts for you? Happy to chat if anyone wants to share their experience.

Might be a silly question, but I'm interested. We're looking to move in the next 18 months. We own our terrace two up two down terrace and want to move to a different area to a three bed (or two if there's potential to convert the loft), and somewhere that has a good sized back garden (this isn't negotiable). Budget wise, it would be a struggle due to our income and prices around here constantly rising (our budget would be £200k - £220k at a push). I've always wanted to renovate a house and there's a fair few empty properties up for sale that tick all the boxes but need a fair amount doing. This would be way more affordable for us as well (I have a substantial amount of savings that would cover this, though not enough to get somewhere that didn't need work). The issue is where we would live if we couldn't live there whilst work is being done. Obviously it's easier if it's a first house and you're living at home, but how do people do it when it's a house move?

Just to note, I'm not looking for advice on mortgages/my savings. We've already looked at finances and know where we stand.

I understand this is common, but i'm very interested in a property where the seller hasn't found anywhere to buy yet and they have a family and ton of stuff to move out of the property.

I love the house, but am chain free and ready to move. I have no idea how long it could take them to find a property and what that chain will be.

I'm trying to find that out and know they are actively searching but if I make an offer, I don't understand what the process is / how easily I can pull out if they end up not finding somewhere any time soon.

E.g. I don't want to pay for a buyers survey and my solicitors with the risk they could not buy somewhere for months which is not suitable for me.

If i made any offer, what would be the next steps and would i typically have to commit before getting oversight on the full chain?

Thanks so much!

Hi all, looking for some advice/opinions on a leasehold major works dispute in central London.

I own a leasehold flat in a ~250 year old listed/protected building in Soho/Covent Garden area. The freeholder/developer carried out extensive refurbishment works over several years. There have already been tribunal proceedings/disputes involving multiple leaseholders and their solicitors.

I’ve now received a “without prejudice save as to costs” settlement offer which includes 20% discount for major works/service charges relating to works allegedly completed in 2022. The full price would’ve been 120k on a 870k apartment.

The issue is that:
- the project dragged on for years
- there was major disruption/scaffolding/inconvenience
- common areas still appear incomplete (lobby/stairs/lift etc.)
- leaseholders repeatedly requested more detailed cost breakdowns/documentation and felt this was not properly provided
- many leaseholders dispute the reasonableness of the costs and are taking it to tribunal
- it doesn’t look like major works, but light refurbishing. and there’s even more work to be done that i’ll be charged for, and i don’t know how much that will cost. might be another 100k+ but also going to tribunal might incur even more legal fees.

From my personal flat’s perspective, the direct works benefiting me were mainly:
- new windows (which i didn’t need or ask for)
- skylight replacement (same, didn’t need or ask for)
- some kitchen pipe work

I fully understand leaseholders contribute toward wider structural/common works and not just their own unit, especially in old listed buildings. I’m not arguing that I should pay nothing.

However, I’m trying to understand:
- whether these figures are remotely normal/reasonable for this type of building/project in central London

- how much weight tribunals give to delays/incomplete common works

- whether refusal/lack of detailed cost transparency is a red flag

- whether a 20% settlement discount suggests litigation risk or if this is standard practice

- what documents/information leaseholders should specifically request before deciding whether to settle or continue disputing

I’m unfamiliar and wholly overwhelmed with how these situations usually play out in the UK leasehold system, so any practical insight would be appreciated.

Thanks in advance!

Hey everyone, hoping to get some advice from people who recently bought a new-build house around London 👋

We’ve found a property we really like and are about to make an offer, but since it seems to be a buyer’s market right now, we’re trying to figure out how aggressive we should be with the first offer and where people realistically ended up settling.

Would love to hear about your experiences:
- How much below the asking price did you go with your first offer?
- What discount did you actually end up getting in the end?
- Did developers negotiate more on price or through incentives/extras?

We are thinking of asking them to full stamp duty abd 10% gifted deposit as our first offee. Is this reasonable?

Any guidance would be highly appreciated 🙏🏻

This is a long one, and I’m been down a whirlwind of options and solutions. The problems of trying to something legitimate here.

I have a family house in London, which we moved out from decades ago and instead of renting it as one, I divided the main building in to 2 dwellings (flat 1 and flat 2) separate access, self contained 1 bedroom and 2 bedroom flat with separate billing and council tax. At the same time I have also had made a guest house when I was living there in about 2007, which has separate garden access, and it was used as my office for a long time and on off till date. And with the occasional nights staying there when I or visit London. I did get building permissions when making this outbuilding. It has its own heating system, kitchen and bathroom, and 2 rooms in total. I have never rented this out before. Fast forward to 2026. My one tenant, single mother with 2 kids cannot afford the 2 bedroom flat rent since over a year and has been attempting to downsize but there’s nothing cheaper in London, given the current conditions. I thought that I can empty out my occasional use annexe, it can be labelled at as a 1 bedroom flat and given her circumstance I’m happy to give it to her on a lower rent which solves her problems.

Now I had never added a fence in the garden to divide the garden in 2 (half for annexe, half for downstairs flat). I am in the process of doing work in the house where I wanted to make the garden of the downstairs fully private from the annexe garden, with an additional layer of privacy and security as I would rent out my 2 bedroom flat again as well.

Now I’m a bit conflicted legally, I have discussed with 2 different architects and I’m getting conflicting answers. I don’t know if I legally can divide the garden and rent the annexe. The annexe doesn’t have a council tax, should I treat the downstairs flat and the annexe as a same dwelling? Legally I am aware I need to get change of use permission from the council. Can I make my annexe a flat 3? Has anyone done anything of the sorts especially in London? And what would be the best way to go about this? I am aware of the ruling of 10 years to prove the self contained flat was in use with bills on my name, company activity and even pictures dating back. So this part I think won’t be an issue but I dont exactly know what I should even be applying for and renting out an annexe. Can I have a gas stove in the annex as well?

Any suggestions, ideas of processes will be helpful.

Long story short...

My family bhought our childhood home which is a flat in a estate in East London. Purchased it from our previous landlord which is a housing association.

Since purchasing we was told we will get a housing ownership officer allocated to us. We've been trying to find out who that is for a year.

I have an ongoing asb issue with a neighbour for 13 years. I've been through the processes possible to resolve this.

One day in February 2026 We received a hard copy letter from the home ownership officer. With no formal introduction. The letter was addressed to my mum who has nothing to do with the case, spelled her name wrong, date on the letter was for February 2025, she kept referring the letter as a email and her return date has no year on it. It was a very poorly written letter, I was very unhappy.

I scanned in the letter and relative documents. I asked her many questions I have been meaning to ask. It's now 3 months since my email and I have had no response. The asb issue is becoming so bad my career is a risk and so is my mental health.

Am I able to submit a stage one formal complaint to the housing association for this? What can I do to get someone to respond to me?