13 May, 2022/ by Surveyor Local /News
Cladding in the UK: what homeowners should know in 2022
The government has revealed a wide-ranging agreement that will see the housing industry contribute £5 billion to address the building safety scandal.
Seen as a victory for leaseholders, ‘Levelling Up' Secretary Michael Gove has found a solution with the housing industry that will see property developers commit a minimum of £2 billion to fix their own buildings. The industry will also pay up to a further £3 billion through an expansion to the Building Safety Levy.
There are companies who are yet to make the pledge, with the Secretary of State confirming there is little time left for them to sign up. It has been made clear that those who continue to refuse will face consequences if they do not.
Regardless of the proposed solutions, which take time to implement, it is important that those looking to buy or sell a property in the UK are up-to-date on building safety. Homeowners need to know what it can mean for transactions, the risks involved, and what has been done to improve safety regulations since the Grenfell Tower fire of 2017.
Read on to find out more.
What is cladding?
Cladding is a term used to describe a layer of material applied to the exterior of a home. Traditionally, it was used simply as a weather-proofing layer to protect underlying structural walls and surfaces from the elements, largely laid on roofs by skilled professionals. Over the past few years, it has started to become an aesthetic addition to the outside of homes and other buildings, to improve the appearance of a standard exterior. It also serves to better insulate a home and help to lower energy bills.
It's possible that you may have seen rural buildings overlaid with wooden panels, in a kind of alpine chalet style. Or, on industrial estates, commercial properties covered in sheets of aluminium. Both are examples of cladding.
How has the law changed around cladding in the UK?
Since the Grenfell tower fire in 2017, cladding has been in the spotlight from a fire safety point of view, leading to a considerable amount of anxiety around tenants and property owners. Owing to a highly flammable plastic cladding called polyurethane being used, and to prevent another tragedy from occurring, new legislation has been introduced by the government.
Owners of flats and buildings with cladding will now require a valid ESW1 (External Wall System 1) form in order to sell or remortgage their property. Getting these forms completed requires the time and work of a surveyor, so the government has invested in the training of around 2000 additional surveyors to help clear the backlog in the system.
How does cladding affect homebuyers?
The presence of cladding on a home is a good sign that the current or previous owner has taken great care maintaining the structural integrity of the home. It should give homebuyers the confidence that they are investing in a sound structure. What's more, aesthetically pleasing cladding adds kerb appeal to a property and will ensure that it retains and grows its value in the years to come.
However, there is a significant ‘but'. Mortgage lenders will not lend on a property unless they know exactly what the cladding in question is made of. Many buildings on which cladding was installed many years ago will not have records of the cladding having been installed, so it can take some time to resolve the issue and progress with your purchase. It is why it makes sense to have a full RICS Level 3 Survey carried out on the home you are looking to buy, should you see that cladding has been installed, to get a more accurate picture of the constitution of the said cladding.
Who is liable for replacing cladding on a property I am buying?
In the majority of cases, it will be the landlord's responsibility to repair and maintain external or structural parts of a building, including the cladding. This means that if you are buying a leasehold property, you will not be responsible at any time for replacing cladding on the property. If you don't undertake a full Level 2 or 3 Survey on a freehold property at the time of purchase, and the cladding needs to be replaced in the future, it is you who is liable to replace it. It is why you should take the time to compare the various different surveys available to you before going ahead with a property purchase, to avoid nasty surprises and costs later down the line.
What could be the effect on your property transaction?
As covered previously, unless there is a formal record of the precise materials used to clad a property, it could be unmortgageable. Lenders are risk averse, so will not lend on a property that they deem to be exposed to a high risk of fire, in case they were to incur heavy losses should an accident happen. Your only options as a seller of a property deemed to have risky cladding would be to completely remove and reinstall the existing cladding, at a high cost, or sell your property for under its value to an investor or cash buyer.
What this means is that you will require the most thorough survey available (RICS Level 3), which will mean opening up the cladding so a sample of the materials can be taken. You can get a survey quote in 60 seconds by using our free quote builder, with next day bookings usually available from our UK-wide network of over 100 expert chartered surveyors.
What cladding safety measures have been implemented?
In January of this year, the government announced that it was to protect leaseholders by making developers and building companies pay to fix dangerous or defective cladding. Procurement guidance was released at the time to assist the construction industry in adopting and implementing procurement practices geared towards safe and high quality buildings.
Building developers will also come under pressure to replace defective or dangerous cladding from the Building Safety Bill, which now allows owners and leaseholders to retrospectively demand compensation for safety defects up to 30 years old. And in high risk buildings, £27m has been allocated for the installation of safety features such as fire alarms and sprinkler systems. There is still work to be done, but it indicates that steps are being taken in the right direction in terms of holding developers to account and incentivising them to replace dangerous or defective cladding materials.
What other issues can a property surveyor help you uncover?
The amount of potential issues that will be identified as part of a survey depends on the level of survey that you undertake. A RICS Level 2 or 3 Survey will look for excess condensation, gutter or roof leaks, missing roof tiles, issues with chimney stacks and a home's ventilation, amongst other things. They also assess the structural quality of a property and advise of any wall defects that may become a problem later down the line, plus woodworm, rot, damp and subsidence. A basic Property Valuation Report will only provide a professional valuation of a property, to prevent you from overpaying. It will not uncover any defects.
Get your quick surveyor quote with us today, and don't forget to instruct a conveyancing solicitor to oversee the sale, purchase or remortgage that you are undertaking.