Selling house - FENSA cert?
Discussion
M11rph said:
Get the paperwork in order.
Whether you feel it is necessary isn't the point, plenty of buyers' will want to see them or have an Indemnity Policy to cover all works. Do you want to significantly delay or lose a sale for such small sums?
You should have or obtain, Electrical Installation Condition Report , Gas Safety Cert and service of boiler within last year, approvals for any works or indemnity policies to cover them. Get this done by the time the house goes on the market.
Both of my house sales required all of the above. The first was delayed by over a month as a result, the second I was prepared and the entire sale took 5 weeks.
Most houses for sale, unless rented out beforehand, won't have a recent EICR or gas safety certificate. I can't see any value in getting either of those before going to market. Whether you feel it is necessary isn't the point, plenty of buyers' will want to see them or have an Indemnity Policy to cover all works. Do you want to significantly delay or lose a sale for such small sums?
You should have or obtain, Electrical Installation Condition Report , Gas Safety Cert and service of boiler within last year, approvals for any works or indemnity policies to cover them. Get this done by the time the house goes on the market.
Both of my house sales required all of the above. The first was delayed by over a month as a result, the second I was prepared and the entire sale took 5 weeks.
Mont Blanc said:
princeperch said:
I've never been asked for them in the past 2 properties I've sold and it wasn't an issue with either.
This. The OP is worrying over nothing. The last house I sold had zero certificates for anything, and neither did my parents house when they sold theirs a few years ago.
The buyers (on both the houses) started asking for proof and certificates of all sorts of things. Gas Safe certificate, when was the boiler last serviced, what rating were the windows, when were the electrics last tested, does it need rewired.... and on it went. We politely but firmly told them to either buy the house as it stood, or go and buy something else. They stopped asking questions and bought the house.
Houses are bought and sold in all states of repair every day. Few private buyers give a crap about when the various certificates were issued.
smokey mow said:
cliffords said:
This is because it is purely a set of regulations that applies at the time of fitting. So if you fit a window, with the current glass applicable at that time , for thermal efficiency, as an example, you don't require a certificate. You do have to fit the right glass, or perhaps have trickle vents if it was today, but you don't need a certificate, you just need to comply with the regulations at that point in time .
There is a whole set of requirements, glass type being just an example.
I’d suggest you read section 35 of the building act - offence of contravening the building regulations.There is a whole set of requirements, glass type being just an example.
This is why indemnity policy exist and there is the procedure for making a retrospective application for approval.
These regulations are enforceable and non submission of an application required under regulation 16 is in itself also an offence.
the amount of double glazing is incidental,
Little Lofty said:
Depending on the size of your porch you could argue that it is exempt from building regs, therefore you could argue a Fensa certificate is not required. Its a bit of a grey area.
OP has said there’s not a door between the porch and the house so on that basis it won’t be exempt. 
Simpo Two said:
'Is there a FENSA certificate?'
'No'.
If it bothers them that much they can walk away. It's a piece of glass in a plastic frame, not a nuclear power station.
This. It’s jaw dropping that someone has come up with this ridiculous certification to mulct yet more money from people. 'No'.
If it bothers them that much they can walk away. It's a piece of glass in a plastic frame, not a nuclear power station.
Our house is 134 years old. It has had windows and doors replaced (very well by a builder mate of mine). It’s had an incredible cellar to office conversion. No certs or building control. It’s had electrics changed. It will be off the scale for insulation (bad, that is).
Anyone moaning about certs when we move will be told to just get real.
Dog Star said:
Simpo Two said:
'Is there a FENSA certificate?'
'No'.
If it bothers them that much they can walk away. It's a piece of glass in a plastic frame, not a nuclear power station.
This. It’s jaw dropping that someone has come up with this ridiculous certification to mulct yet more money from people. 'No'.
If it bothers them that much they can walk away. It's a piece of glass in a plastic frame, not a nuclear power station.
Our house is 134 years old. It has had windows and doors replaced (very well by a builder mate of mine). It’s had an incredible cellar to office conversion. No certs or building control. It’s had electrics changed. It will be off the scale for insulation (bad, that is).
Anyone moaning about certs when we move will be told to just get real.
Dog Star said:
This. It’s jaw dropping that someone has come up with this ridiculous certification to mulct yet more money from people.
Our house is 134 years old. It has had windows and doors replaced (very well by a builder mate of mine). It’s had an incredible cellar to office conversion. No certs or building control. It’s had electrics changed. It will be off the scale for insulation (bad, that is).
Anyone moaning about certs when we move will be told to just get real.
That's fine until a potential buyer lets slip to the council and they come around for enforcement...Our house is 134 years old. It has had windows and doors replaced (very well by a builder mate of mine). It’s had an incredible cellar to office conversion. No certs or building control. It’s had electrics changed. It will be off the scale for insulation (bad, that is).
Anyone moaning about certs when we move will be told to just get real.
MajorMantra said:
Solicitors seem to love indemnity policies but they really do seem like money down the drain. Often it's easier just to agree to one to avoid holding up a transaction, and it feels like that's what the whole business relies on – no one sane is going to risk scuppering a chain for the sake of a £40-120 policy.
And with a premium that low it suggests there are very few claims, and/or that if the Gestapo come round demanding papers, the cost to fix is not great.I think buyers ask all these questions because they find the list on the internet.
The purchaser of a house I was selling asked (through the estate agent) for an indemnity for a missing Fensa certificate for patio doors that were 18 years old.
The buyers were mildly annoying, arguing about ownership of a fence that was not marked on the title deed, and asking for small amounts of money off for immaterial things.
I agreed they were welcome to buy an indemnity policy for themselves. It wasn’t the cost, it was the nitpicking I heard nothing more.
The buyers were mildly annoying, arguing about ownership of a fence that was not marked on the title deed, and asking for small amounts of money off for immaterial things.
I agreed they were welcome to buy an indemnity policy for themselves. It wasn’t the cost, it was the nitpicking I heard nothing more.
Evanivitch said:
That's fine until a potential buyer lets slip to the council and they come around for enforcement...
I've always got B/C for structural work / big work / Extensions (unless exempt as my other topic), that's advisable. But if someone has lost a FENSA for 1 window, 5 years ago, it's unlikely to be enforced.
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