Issues spotted during house viewing

zerodarkthirty

I went to view a house last Thursday and happened to remark that the house felt very warm .The EA said that as the house is unoccupied the owners put the heating on for a couple of hours each day.at the time I didn't think much of it, but now I am wondering was it on to possibly cover up something else as I thought maybe it would make more sense to put the heating on in the evening when it was colder.Could they possibly be trying to keep mould/ damp at bay by having it on?Why would they be racking up a bit of a gas bill when they are not even in the house?Is that any reason they might be putting it on?Is there any other sign I should look for that might mean a dampness problem?

on another note, the water has been turned off, so it was not possible to test water pressure or run taps/ flush toilet. the EA said it was for insurance purposes as the house is vacant, which leads me to wonder why the water had to be turned off but not the gas?

any advice on the above would be greatly appreciated as I am going for a second viewing tomorrow.

A thanks in advance

kandoola

A cold house wouldnt be very inviting to buyers.
Im betting the EA had the heating set to come on. Make you feel more comfortable.

Like baking bread, freshly cut grass, Coffee brewing, plenty of bird seed on the table to make it more homely.

Obviously had the opposite effect on you, but it would make most people feel more comfy than a freezing house.

TheDriver

doesn't sound suspicious to me but a good look around and engineers report could test all those if you are sale agreed. Water is merely a stopcock at the gate but in fairness the EA doesn't want to be doing that each viewing.

Mrs OBumble

Depending on the types of system(s) in the house, some insurance companies ask for the water off and various things (tanks, pipes, rads) drained if a house will be empty for more than 30 days. Worse case, a plumber chargers a couple of hours labour to do the work - but it may not be possible to just put the water on at the stopcock.

The_Conductor

I get where you're coming from- but I do think you may be reading too much into it........

Deenie123

It's good practice to keep the house warm at this time of year... If I went into an unoccupied house and it was freezing I'd be worried that it hadn't been properly looked after and there'd be a whole host of problems waiting to be discovered!

moxin

If the house is indeed freezing having to constantly heat it, it could point to bad insulation. Big heating bills ahead.

zerodarkthirty

The house has been recently insulated, walls and attic

Bricriu

It makes sense for the vendor to have a house warm when a potential buyer comes to inspect it.

Re water pressure, I wouldn't worry about that at the moment; if you arrange a second viewing you should ask for the water to be on. Failing that, it will definitely have to be on when your surveyor goes to inspect the house.

Don't buy a house that has not been carefully inspected by a surveyor, a civil engineer or an architect.

allibastor

I viewed a house recently that had no heating on. It was very hard to imagine living there as it was sooooooo cold it kind of put it in a bad way before we even looked properly. The house was vacant for 2 months and hadn't been heated since.

Water being off is common though.