Backfall in foul line

Daniel112

Partner and I have just gone sale agreed on a house (haven't signed contracts yet) and we had a Drainage CCTV survey conducted. According to the report we got back, the only real issue highlighted was "The foul line along the back has a back fall and is holding water." and would cost an estimated 5k to fix. Next door have the same issue and they claim they simply flush it with water roughly every 2-3 years (don't know how true that claim is).

I'm looking for advice as to what to do next. The obvious thing to do is send the report to our solicitor and Engineer and try and get the 5k off the purchase price of the property but we are concerned that once they are informed, this could hold up the whole process or it would need to be fixed before being allowed to sign contracts. There is also the issue of the mortgage from the bank. If they hear of this would it cause problems with drawing down the mortgage at all?

Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

Lenar3556

An incorrect fall in a sewage line will make it more prone to blockage. It will be very hard to assess at this point how big of a practical issue this backfall is likely to be if left as is. It is possible that occasional jetting may mitigate the issue as seems to be the case with your prospective neighbour, but really you need to be prepared to properly remedy the issue.

It may simply be a case that the pipe settled after installation, or that for some reason it was installed at an incorrect gradient from day one. An experienced contractor should be in a position to identify if there is any inherent issue with levels, or if this is a localised settlement issue.

As there is a lender involved, your solicitor will have to certify good title to the bank, so you need to consider that before you go out of your way to notify him/her of defects which could impact a lenders ability to sell the property in the event of a default by the borrower. I’m not saying you shouldn’t discuss with your solicitor, but your concerns in this regard are not unfounded.

Is the vendor likely to accept a reduction in the sale price? Do they have other offers? Is the property still a good buy if you factor in an additional spend of €5k? These are the questions you need to ask yourself.

10-10-20

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120815941#Comment_120815941

Great response.

In that respect we bought a house with a backfall on one particular pipe and it has actually only been a moderate issue twice in 17 years- your mileage may vary, but I'd be looking for a reduction in line with Lenar's response.

Calahonda52

In the current market I doubt if yo will get a reduction.

In addition, if the report never sees the light of day beyond your desk, then its not a clean bank title issue as out of sight is out of mind.

I have the same issue here, 3 or 4 buckets of water solve it so I would be spending 5k on it