Selling a house with damp issues

Selling a house with damp is never going to be easy. The very word ‘damp’ conjures up all kinds of negative images for home buyers. Cold and wet. Mouldy and smelly. Peeling wallpaper and unappealing stains. No wonder YouGov found that as many as 87% of buyers would be put off buying a house with damp issues.

Yet damp problems aren’t always a deal breaker. If you know about them in advance, you can often get them fixed quickly and easily before you go to market. However, not everyone has the money to pay for repairs or enough time for the damp to dry out fully afterwards before they put their house on the market.

Repairs are not always possible if you’re in a rush to sell for personal or financial reasons. In this case, you can either think about selling a house with damp at a lower price, or sell it to a cash buyer, who will take your property in any condition, wet or dry.

What exactly is damp?

Unfortunately, damp is one of those cover-all phrases that includes everything from a minor condensation problem to rotting timbers that threaten the very structure of your home. To complicate things further, the signs of damp don’t always reflect the severity of the problem. You can have ugly peeling wallpaper and nasty stains from something as simple, and as easy to fix, as drying washing indoors without proper ventilation. On the other hand, a serious issue with penetrating damp can be hidden in the walls and only show in small patches to start with.

Do you have to declare damp when selling?

Yes, you do. It’s a legal requirement. You can’t just paint over the evidence and hope that they won’t notice. Damp is one of the subjects covered by the TA6 Property Information form that you’ll be sent by the buyer’s solicitors. If you don’t declare an obvious damp problem, and it’s later discovered by your buyers, they could sue you for the cost of any repairs needed. You can be damn sure this will be much more expensive than simply doing the work yourself, so it’s just not worth the gamble.

How much does damp devalue a house?

It’s easy to see why some people try to hide damp problems. Damp can devalue a house by as much as 20%. This is partly due to the work involved in putting the problem right, and partly due to the stigma of selling a house with damp. With 87% of buyers put off, the remaining 13% will expect a significant reduction in price, and there’ll be no one to out-bid them and drive that price up.

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The importance of an independent damp report

The best way of selling a house with damp is to get ahead of the problem. Don’t just wait for the buyer’s surveyor to poke his cheap little meter into the walls and jump to conclusions. You need to get a damp report from an independent expert to find out the cause of the damp, the extent of the problem, and the most effective solution. The word ‘independent’ is key here. Don’t use an inspector whose new car or next holiday is dependent on him finding certain types of problem that require remedial work from his company. You need a completely independent view. (See the rising damp section below).

Having a professional damp report means you know exactly where you stand when selling a house with damp. You can use it, together with the receipts from repairs, to show the problem has been solved, putting your buyer’s mind at rest. Alternatively, you can use it to show the limits of the issue and stop your buyers from making a worst-case-scenario reduction in their offer.

The importance of an independent damp report

Should I fix the problem before selling a home with damp?

If you can afford to do the work first, then this is the best course of action if you’re thinking of selling a house with damp. Most buyers want a new home that they can move into and start enjoying straight away. They don’t want the cost or disruption of remedial works, and they don’t want to worry about the extent of any damp issues.

By organising damp treatments yourself before you go on the market, you are effectively taking the issue off the table before it becomes a problem for buyers. Get it fixed and you’re no longer selling a house with damp. Unfortunately, not everyone has the means to do this, especially if they’re selling due to mortgage problems or other financial difficulties. This is where a cash house buyer can ride to the rescue.

What do damp treatments cost?

As we talked about earlier, the term damp covers a whole range of problems, so there is no single solution or price to get it fixed. The cost of damp repairs varies widely, but here are a few examples:

Damp from condensation – this can be solved for free by simply getting into the habit of opening windows to ventilate your home. You can also install vents or fans, or you could invest in a dehumidifier, which can be bought on Amazon for as little as £60.
Penetrating damp – this can be caused by physical problems with your property, such as faulty pointing and render, cracked brickwork, missing roof tiles or leaky gutters. The cost of repairs will depend on the source of the problem, but it’s rarely more than a few hundred pounds.
Damp proof course – you may be recommended to get a chemical damp proof course installed to fix rising damp. This costs around £100 per linear metre, which adds up to around £3000 – £4000 for a standard semi. You’ll also have to add the cost of making good any plasterwork, electrics or woodwork that is disrupted by the treatment. *However, before you take on the eye-watering expense of a damp proof course, make sure you read the section below on rising damp*.

It’s worth noting that fixing a damp problem is only half the battle. Drying out the damage can take weeks, or even months. Penetrating damp can take up to a month per inch of wall thickness to dry out. This needs to be factored into your selling schedule, or your house will still show up as damp, even though the problem has been dealt with. If you don’t have that kind of time, you can sell your house with damp to a cash buyer in just three or four weeks.

Does your house need a full refurbishment?

If your property is in a state of disrepair you are probably asking yourself how much more would it be worth if I renovate it and is it worth all of the time, effort and expense?

Read our comprehensive guide to see if refurbishing your house is the best option for you;

Guide: Should you renovate your house before selling it?

Does rising damp actually exist?

This is where the whole damp issue gets a bit silly. Google the question ‘does rising damp exist?’ or ‘is rising damp real?’, or simply Google ‘rising damp myth’, and you’ll get a confusing mix of vehemently held, yet conflicting opinions. Some insist that rising damp is a very real problem, while others are convinced that rising damp is a myth, created to make work for damp proofing companies. (You’ll also get some links to a 70s sit com starring Leonard Rossiter, but you can ignore those).

Many ‘myth’ articles point to Stephen Boniface, the former chairman of the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors. Apparently, he said that true rising damp is a myth, and damp proof courses are a complete waste of money. However, if you dig deeper, you’ll find that even he isn’t really sure, stating on LinkedIn that “I do not know, and am not bothered, whether rising damp exists or not.”

If it exists at all, rising damp is relatively rare compared to other causes of damp. For Boniface, the real problem is that many other, simpler and cheaper, damp issues are mis-diagnosed as rising damp, either carelessly or deliberately. This means that people are paying out for damp courses that they simply don’t need, and which won’t solve their problem.

This is why it’s vital that you get a damp report from a truly independent specialist who has no ties to any damp proofing companies. Only then will you get a thorough and holistic assessment of your damp issue and find the true source of your problem.

What are the signs of damp?

Damp can manifest in all kinds of ways, depending on the source of the problem. If you have penetrating damp, you’ll see ugly stained areas on your walls and ceilings where the water is getting in. These will spread out as the problem gets worse, leaving tide marks.

If your damp is more general, due to condensation, then you’ll often see moisture on the windows in winter, and even in the summer months. This is a sign that you need to ventilate the space to let the moisture out. Condensation can make paper and paint peel off the walls, and you may see black mould growth in areas where moisture gathers, such as where walls meet ceilings and above kitchen cabinets.

More serious damp issues can leave salty deposits on the inside or outside of the wall, as the moisture draws up chemicals from the ground and leaves them behind when it evaporates. Some walls may feel permanently damp, even in dry weather.

Does damp cause health issues?

Living with damp can be miserable. Your clothes and furnishings will smell and get mouldy and the air will taste rank. But for some people, damp is much more serious than that. According to the Environmental Protection Agency, damp is the cause of 21% of all asthma cases. Housing charity Shelter says that the health of three quarters of million children is at risk from damp, and exposure to damp mould was named as the cause of death of a Rochdale toddler in 2020.

Can you get a mortgage on a house with damp?

With some of the oldest housing stock in Europe, enduring the trials of the terrible British weather, it’s not surprising that damp is very common in British homes. As a result, buying a house with damp will not normally stop you from getting a mortgage.

However, some lenders will insist that you protect their investment by getting the problem fixed within a set timescale. They may even withhold a portion of the home loan until you can prove that the work has been done. This is why it’s usually best to get problems sorted out before you go to market if you’re selling a house with damp.

Conclusion

Selling a house with damp is a real challenge for a number of reasons, and it can reduce the value by as much as 20%. Yet fixing the problem before you go to market can cost hundreds or even thousands of pounds. That can leave many sellers caught between a rock and a hard place.

The good news is that cash house buyers will buy any property in any condition, with a cash offer in 24 hours and a sale in as quick as a few weeks. To get a no obligations cash offer from a trusted house buyer click the ‘find a buyer’ button below, and let someone else absorb your damp problem while you’re home and dry in your next property.

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Selling a house with damp issues

What exactly is damp?

Do you have to declare damp when selling?

How much does damp devalue a house?

The importance of an independent damp report

Should I fix the problem before selling a home with damp?

What do damp treatments cost?

Does your house need a full refurbishment?

Does rising damp actually exist?

What are the signs of damp?

Does damp cause health issues?

Can you get a mortgage on a house with damp?

Conclusion

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