There’s nothing more frustrating than when you have a broken boiler. This is especially true if you’re about to sell your house and your boiler breaks down. Or worse still, your boiler breaks in the middle of selling your house.
So can you sell your house with a broken boiler? You can sell your house with a broken boiler, but in order to do so you will have to drop the asking price by more than the price of a new boiler. If you try to sell your house with a broken boiler you must disclose this fact and your house will attract buyers looking for a renovation project.
Is it a good idea to sell a house with a broken boiler?
It’s not a good idea to sell a house with a broken boiler because it will adversely affect the asking price and it may make your house more difficult to sell.
Having a broken boiler is a bit of a red flag. It will create suspicion among buyers who may think there are other problems in addition to a dodgy boiler. They have good reason to be worried too.
But be prepared for these buyers to bargain hard with you.
How much does it cost to fix a broken boiler?
In the worst case scenario the cost to completely replace a broken boiler will be between £1,500 to £2,000. Unless you have a very large house, which would mean this cost could be higher. But your broken boiler will only need to be replaced if it’s very old, not repairable or condemned (see below).
The cost to repair a broken boiler instead of replacing it will depend on what has broken. For example, it might be something simple and cheap to repair. But it may not actually be the boiler that’s broken, as it might be the water pump that’s broken instead.
You should get a least two quotes to fix whatever has broken with your heating system. The contractor must be gas registered to repair or replace a boiler.
What to do if you can’t afford to fix your broken boiler?
If you can’t afford to fix your broken boiler, but you want to sell your house whilst it’s broken, be prepared for cheeky offers on your house. See below to discover who would buy a house with a broken boiler.
It would be worth trying to find the money to pay for the repair. Even if this means borrowing the money on a small loan or on a credit card. Or even ask family or a friend if they will lend you the money. But make sure you can afford what you borrow, and always pay it back.
For example, let’s say the quote to fix your broken boiler is £2,000. If borrow the £2,000, this might cost say £100 in interest. However, if you don’t fix the broken boiler before selling your house, you might need to reduce the asking price by at least £10,000. But you may get lower offers that may cost you more than £10,000.
With this example, and assuming you don’t get low offers, by paying for the repair you make back £7,900 on the sale (i.e. £10,000 – £2,000 – £100 = £7,900).
Who would buy a house with a broken boiler?
The type of buyer who would buy a house with a broken boiler include builders, developers, flippers and home owners looking for a property to do up.
All of whom will be looking for a deal. Builders, developers and flippers need to make a profit when they buy and sell property. Which means they will factor a profit into the offer they make. Whereas home owners looking for a bargain don’t need to make a profit, but they will want a good deal.
A house with a broken boiler will be harder to sell
Any house with something wrong will make it much harder to sell. Which includes a broken boiler.
It’s because you’re selling to a smaller pool of buyers. The majority of home buyers want to move in and not lift a finger with their new home. Which means that most buyers won’t buy a house with a broken boiler.
It’s no different to buying a car. Would you buy a car if the engine doesn’t work or if it didn’t have an MOT? Whilst you probably answered ‘no’, there are others that would. But at a far reduced price compared to similar car with a working engine and an MOT.
I appreciate selling a house is quite a bit different to selling a car, but the principle is the same. It takes a certain type of buyer to buy a house when something isn’t working.
Also be aware that even if the asking price reflects the broken boiler issue, you will still get lower offers because the boiler doesn’t work!
We also buy houses like this and we are here to help. We have many creative ways to work with home owners to help them sell their houses. Contact us to find out more if you can’t afford to repair your boiler, but you need to sell you house.
Should you tell the buyer if the boiler brakes down after the survey?
If your boiler breaks down after the survey has been carried out for the buyer you must inform the buyer of this fact. If you don’t it’s possible they may issue legal proceedings against you for the cost of repair. This is especially true if the boiler was working when it was checked by the survey.
But it’s also morally right to let your buyer’s know the boiler has broken. If possible you should fix what’s broken before the sale goes through. But if not, you may lose the sale or the buyer may be happy to reduce their offer to reflect the cost of repair.
Be kind to your buyers as you never know when this may bite you in the backside. If you leave them in the lurch with a broken boiler, don’t expect them to set aside or forward any post for you.
Should you repair a broken boiler after exchange?
If the boiler breaks down after contracts are exchanged, you should repair it out of courtesy. But if there’s no time to do so, you should let the buyers know as soon as possible.
You may struggle to sell a house with a condemned boiler as this is similar to selling a house with a broken boiler. However, you may find that if the boiler is condemned, buyers may find it harder to get a mortgage.
The surveyor will discover the boiler is condemned and will report this to the buyer’s mortgage company. The mortgage company will either refuse to lend unless the boiler is fixed. Alternatively, they may put a retention on the mortgage for the cost to fix the problem.
Conclusion to can you sell your house with a broken boiler
If your house has a broken boiler suspicions will be raised by buyers. As a result buyers may ask other questions about what else might be wrong with the property. You should therefore try as hard as you can to fix your broken boiler before you sell your house.
The main reason is because this is one of those rare occasions when you’ll get back more than pay out. But also, having a brand new boiler is a selling point. Buyers will like the idea the boiler is modern and efficient, plus the fact it should last them for the next 10-20 years.
As a closing tip it’s recommended to buy a boiler maintenance contract for your next property. The cost of these are not to much, and they can be a life saver.
For example, as I write this article in the middle of winter our hot water and heating system has just stopped working! But because as we have a maintenance contract this will be fixed under the contract. And quickly too. The contract also provides us with an annual service and gas safety certificate too.
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Article written by Russell Bowyer who has been investing in property since purchasing his first commercial property in the 1990's for his own Chartered Accountancy business. But his first property investment project was to turn an old dilapidated restaurant into a large 5-bed home, which he purchased for £117,500 and sold for £450,000 (to see an "after" photo of the house before it was sold see here: About). Russell owns a number of investment properties, which includes houses, flats and HMO's. More recently he has turned his creative side to investing in property using lease options. His largest lease option deal to date was to acquire 12 properties worth over £2 million for just £12, which means he paid just £1 to acquire each property!
