Hello All
I am in the process of buying a mid-terrace house (1890's). The survey has come back with 'damp' in three places; the party wall in the hallway, the back wall and the cupboard under the stairs (same party wall).

A quote of £600 has been given and the present owners want us to go halves on it.

The house has been decorated (painted walls) and new carpets installed last December throughout.

What mess can I expect from having it damp-proofed? What odours? How long before plaster dries out, etc?

This job could affect the purchase.

Any advice would be appreciated. Thank you all!

Winnie

they remove 1metres off plaster and the skirting in rooms concerned so quite disruptive

_________________
we are all ------------------still learning

I agree with BA it can be very disruptive and usually there quote is for just carrying out the work and no redecorating

_________________
If you think nobody cares, try missing a couple of payments..

The first thing to do is take a look at these places yourself and see if the walls are indeed damp.
The next is to take a careful look at the outside of the house to identify if there is a damp proof course,with a house of that age, it will be two rows of slate, level with the bottom of the front door.
The next thing is to speak to the people living next door, who share the party wall and to ask them if their wall is damp in the same places, an ask to see those places.
It may well be, that the lady of the house is keen on indoor plants and she is over watering and making the wall damp.
With a solid wall such as this, damp will be shared by both sides, if there is damp.
If there is damp and there is no damp proof course, it is likely that the house has been damp since the day it was built. You then need to make a judgement, other people have lived, are living with the damp - without having it fixed for over a hundred years. Is the damp doing any harm?
Keep in mind that water is a very good conductor of heat, if you have damp wall, your heat will be moving next door, or perhaps better? Their heat will be coming your way!