daniel mason
|
| posted on 18/1/12 at 07:53 PM |
|
|
am thinking of buying a house which occasionally floods! am i mad?
i am considering buying another house atm,but as its only 5 meters away from the river bank, (general river level is about 2 meters below edge of
garden) it has flooded a few times on the ground floor, about 12" deep at times. this has not occurred for probably about 5 years though.
basically the ground floor consists of a 25' x 25' double integrated garage, a downstairs wc,utility and 25' x 18' reception
room. none of which are lived in.
1st floor has lounge,kitchen,bathroom and 3 beds,
2nd floor has 2 x beds
as you look at the house from the front the garage is to the right and this is where the water can get in. and obviously there is no way of stopping
it from doing so if serious flooding occurs.due to the garage door.
now for a couple of questions;
1; if i were to tank all the internal ground floor walls up to 1 meter high, and put a couple of 6" steps out of garage into the other ground
floor rooms,raising the floor level,would this be adequate for insurance reasons to make the ground floor habitable? and insuring contents
2; its a stone built house and is reasonably old. i would say 1940's to 1950's. so is flooding likely to cause permanent damage? the
actual floods are only caused when localised flooding and extreme high tides occur at the same time so generally will only be flooded for a 3-4 hours
at a time maximum. and maybe on average once every 3-4 years!
3; what tanking systems work best to prevent water penetrating?
|
|
|
|
|
Ninehigh
|
| posted on 18/1/12 at 07:59 PM |
|
|
Yes
You're mad
Insurance companies won't touch you with each other's! (going on what I've heard after every flood anyway)
|
|
|
steve m
|
| posted on 18/1/12 at 08:01 PM |
|
|
I doubt you would get a mortgage company either
And yes, your barking mad!
|
|
|
Jed
|
| posted on 18/1/12 at 08:11 PM |
|
|
There was talk recently of the agreement between the government and the Association of British Insurers not being extended beyond the 2013 expiry
date. Currently insurers agree to continue insuring you (probably hiking the premiums) despite claims but once that agreement expires they can then
refuse you insurance.
Is it really worth the hassle of buying a flood prone house and would your car insurance not also rise if it is being kept in a flood prone area?
|
|
|
ReMan
|
| posted on 18/1/12 at 08:14 PM |
|
|
Bonkers, dont do it
Occassionally will become permmanantly very soon
www.plusnine.co.uk
|
|
|
oldtimer
|
| posted on 18/1/12 at 08:26 PM |
|
|
Mad or insane - take your pick! Difficult to mortgage and difficult to insure = difficult to sell on. Plenty of places about with views of rivers
rather than in them. This situation will almost certainly get worse not better, unless, of course, it is at an unmissable price because of it's
flood history??
|
|
|
mookaloid
|
| posted on 18/1/12 at 08:29 PM |
|
|
woof woof - barking - seriously talk to mortgage and insurance people before doing anything - they will tell you.
"That thing you're thinking - it wont be that."
|
|
|
roadrunner
|
| posted on 18/1/12 at 08:33 PM |
|
|
There is an upside to it. It will be great for fishing.
And yes, your mad .
|
|
|
bj928
|
| posted on 18/1/12 at 08:34 PM |
|
|
if its the right price and location, and you like it, lots of people live with flooding, its just one of those things, mmaybe raise the garage floor
and or put a bank around to shield the house, have some sand bags at the ready, if its only for a short period of flood, and you know it will happen,
adapt and enjoy.
|
|
|
Ben_Copeland
|
| posted on 18/1/12 at 08:35 PM |
|
|
It'll be cheap then, if you have the cash... Mortgage and insurance be pretty difficult to get as per above
Ben
Locost Map on Google Maps
Z20LET Astra Turbo, into a Haynes
Roadster
Enter Your Details Here
http://www.facebook.com/EquinoxProducts for all your bodywork needs!
|
|
|
daniel mason
|
| posted on 18/1/12 at 08:36 PM |
|
|
Fishing rights included!
On a serious note it is very cheap, but like you guys say, it's been for sale for quite a while and one sale fell though at last minute.
|
|
|
T66
|
| posted on 18/1/12 at 08:49 PM |
|
|
Several friends of ours were washed out by the big flood in 2008.
One of them has a house on the river at Morpeth, he has 9' ceilings, and at its worst had 7' in his living room.
He left the house on the friday night in a dinghy from upstairs, the Saturday was the big flood which trashed a lot of Morpeth town centre.
He still lives there, his insurance paid up without problem, his current policy is one he negotiated and is tied into for 5 years. He has various bits
of fittings on his external doors to add flood gates. Couple of scares since 2008, when he moves everything upstairs.
There are still uninsured houses in Morpeth not been touched since the flood in 2008.Since then a new bungalow got built on the riverside his garage
is the first level, with all living accomodation on the first floor. He regularly loses bits of his back garden, generally in November.
Sounds like this has been thought of by who ever built the one your looking at, might be worth having a chat with the local NRA guy, he will know the
water courses. It depends on the the locality, and how much your wanting to live there.
ie high insurance and the risk of your garage full of brown water every couple of years (sewage)
|
|
|
silverback
|
| posted on 18/1/12 at 08:49 PM |
|
|
Buying a house close to known flooded areas are really a big no no. If you are trying to get a mortgage, you will find that you will most likely be
turned down flat. Like a ton of bricks. If you are paying cash for the house then you will find the insurances a big problem.
If you are really set on this property and there is no others around that will serve your purpose, your best bet will be to go to the local council,
tell them your problem, they should have a list of civil engineers who would come out and give you ideas and possible costs to put this property
right.
The mortgage company will keep a retainer of the money you are borrowing for the mortgage untill this flooding problem is rectified and then the
retaining monies will be then released.
I hope this helps.
I went through this once and it was frightening and gave me nightmares through the day never mind the night.
I nearly lossed my marriage over it, but it came right on the night.
It might look like a big black tunnel to start with but eventually you get through it.
Mick
|
|
|
T66
|
| posted on 18/1/12 at 08:57 PM |
|
|
You can alter the external water defences to the house, but the drains overflow and push back into the house via the waste pipes you have.
|
|
|
daniel mason
|
| posted on 18/1/12 at 08:58 PM |
|
|
I am not set on this house for definate, but if it could be bought for the right price and gradually done up over next few years, I am sure it would
prove a bit of a money maker!
Problem is I would need to borrow a load more money than I already have on my mortgage. Which may prove difficult.
|
|
|
daniel mason
|
| posted on 18/1/12 at 09:06 PM |
|
|
just to note. the river is not very big and is fairly fast flowing. its around 3-4 meters wide and about 4 foot deep in the middle. not exactly the
nile!
|
|
|
motorcycle_mayhem
|
| posted on 18/1/12 at 09:07 PM |
|
|
You're unlikely to secure a mortgage on the property. I've just bought my new home with a mortgage, it wasn't easy - and the house
doesn't have a history of flooding.
You're unlikely to get flood cover on the insurance, though this isn't rare these days.
You're unlikely to sell the house quickly if you need to.
If the above isn't important to you, you like the house, just buy it and enjoy. Life is short. That's what I've done in the past - I
bought a superb place next to a *huge* telecoms mast, I mean huge, really huge. Selling it when I was made redundant was difficult (cancer scares,
etc.), remains the biggest financial loss I've ever made. Really enjoyed though when I had it. Life is short.
I enjoy kayaking. I suggest you take it up too.
|
|
|
mad4x4
|
| posted on 18/1/12 at 09:14 PM |
|
|
quote:
Originally posted by daniel mason
just to note. the river is not very big and is fairly fast flowing. its around 3-4 meters wide and about 4 foot deep in the middle. not exactly the
nile!
Even a "burn" like that can turn into the NILE..... - I would say NO
Scot's do it better in Kilts.
MK INDY's Don't Self Centre Regardless of MK Setting !
|
|
|
daniel mason
|
| posted on 18/1/12 at 09:20 PM |
|
|
i would honestly love to get into kayaking! i already have a mortgage and would probably have almost 40% equity in the new property. meaning i would
be still borrowing 60% which may prove difficult! if i moved there. i would never move again. it would be a dream home to settle in. and has loads of
living accommodation on 1st and 2nd floors. with 5 bedrooms. kit car could live on trailer in garage away from potential fllood risk.
|
|
|
JoelP
|
| posted on 18/1/12 at 10:19 PM |
|
|
I believe you can get fittings in your soil pipes to stop backflow. Failing than, run all downstairs wastes via a saniflow up to the first floor, and
drop it into a soil pipe up there. Thus backflow has to reach first floor to get in.
However, im not sure a small stream flooding would cause sewers to backflow immediately, depends on the local setup i suspect.
It could be that you can live with it and manage the problem, and insurance/mortgage might be the only problem.
Beware! Bourettes is binfectious.
|
|
|
perksy
|
| posted on 18/1/12 at 10:41 PM |
|
|
Mate of mine used to live right by the river and when the weather was nice it was great
That flooded a few times and the river used to even come up through the floor in the lounge
The smell of Rat p*ss etc was awful and it used to take ages to dry out even with Dehumidifiers going full tilt
After about 3 years of trying he managed to sell it at a much reduced price
He also had all the insurance problems mentioned above (premium was very high and nobody else would quote)
Seeing what he went through i wouldn't touch one with a bargpole...
|
|
|
daniel mason
|
| posted on 18/1/12 at 10:55 PM |
|
|
the thing is that the ground floor floors are all concrete and walls are all stone. so there is no wood to rot or smell etc, no carpets down. living
area is on 1st and second floor and i cant imagine 3-4 hours of 6"-12" flood water every 3-4 years causing too many problems! other than
insurance and mortgage.
if there was no 2nd floor,or groung floor was lived in,it would be a definate no go but in this instance i dont think its too bad!
|
|
|
Ivan
|
| posted on 19/1/12 at 07:16 AM |
|
|
To do proper due diligence on this one I would approach the local Council or other official bodies to find out if they had done 5, 10, 25, 50 and 100
year flood lines - if they have it should be easy to check possible height of truly big floods in your location - also check what highest flood was
in recent memory and how it equated to the above flood lines.
|
|
|
daniel mason
|
| posted on 19/1/12 at 07:27 AM |
|
|
I actually live about 100 meters away from that house now. And from recent memory I'd say about 10 years ago there was 10" to 12" of
flood/tide water on the ground floor
|
|
|
jeffw
|
| posted on 19/1/12 at 07:28 AM |
|
|
http://www.environment-agency.gov.uk/homeandleisure/floods/default.aspx
|
|
|
