Roof and building damage - questions

[chrismbv]

Hey All,

Please checkout our pics here and help answer our questions!

We're purchasing a ground floor flat in a semi-detached flat of 4.

- We have a share of freehold and will need to pay an equal share for repairs to the roof and any damage to the property from roof issues.
- They haven't had any quotes yet.

Unfortunately there is damage in the upstairs flat, and they want to do work right after we move in!

Please could anyone help shed some light to our Questions:

• What's caused this damage?
  What would be an estimated ballpark figure for repair?

Background:

• The owners have lived there 12 years and our very old so it's hard to get good details!
  They don't know when the roof extension was built in.
  The damaged walls didn't feel very wet, slightly damp and a bit sticky (owners are smokers)
  The main long wall with the damage on is attached to another building

Thanks so much for any help!

 

[freddiemercurystwin]

Your photos are useless, they could be any room under any leaking roof. Need some photos of the outside.

 

[chrismbv]

Your photos are useless, they could be any room under any leaking roof. Need some photos of the outside.

Fair enough but unfortunately it's 4 stories up, only shot we have from outside is this: http://imgur.com/1XqKoIM

I hope from experience, maybe someone could have an idea of what's up here without seeing the roof!?

Thanx.

 

[freddiemercurystwin]

Yea the roof probably needs replacing or could be the parapet flashings if there are parapets, or the coping stones if there is a parapet along the party wall, poor pointing on any exposed brickwork broken tiles, old tiles that have slipped or any combination of the above. Really cannot say without more information/photos. Sorry.

 

[chrismbv]

Yea the roof probably needs replacing or could be the parapet flashings if there are parapets, or the coping stones if there is a parapet along the party wall, poor pointing on any exposed brickwork broken tiles, old tiles that have slipped or any combination of the above. Really cannot say without more information/photos. Sorry.

Freddy thanks, any info at this stage helps!

If it could be anything then the total cost could be anywhere between what, £3k to new roof.
What's a new roof cost!? £15k-20k? - it was all many shapes - some slopes, some flat (though maybe zero flat). Floorspace of roof extension room was about 18ft by 12ft)

In which case we simply can't really purchase until we know - as we have to pay 1/4

Maybe we'd need a quote on the work - though at 4 stories up I assume this is hard to get?

 

[freddiemercurystwin]

How about a screen grab from Google Earth showing the roof plan?

 

[chrismbv]

Good idea!

Here's what I could get...

Untitled

• chrismbv
• 21 Aug 2014
• 1

imgur link

 

[freddiemercurystwin]

So how about if you draw on the image in a blue line or something where the corresponding damp on the walls is, as its non too clear from your first post. That may narrow it down to the chimney and parapet on the party wall for instance.

 

[chrismbv]

OK, here's my guess-work at lining up the pics and chimney parts of the wall, to the roof pic...

imgur link for higher res image

Untitled

• chrismbv
• 21 Aug 2014
• 1

imgur link for higher res image