Property guru Kirstie Allsopp has issued an urgent warning about a little-known feature that could render your home unsellable.
On last night’s episode of Love It Or List It on Channel 4, Anne-Marie and Paul were deciding whether to keep or sell their 1920s three-bedroom home in Milton Keynes.
They embarked on an ambitious set of renovations with just a £50,000 budget to transform their ‘disorganised’ and ‘cluttered’ house.
But, just as they began the process of re-plastering one of the bedrooms, ‘disaster struck’ after finding a leak – and this was just the beginning.
After getting builders in, it was found that the couple had spray foam insulation in their loft, which cost thousands of pounds to fix as they had to remove part of the roof.
Host Kirstie Allsopp was quick to explain that the seemingly harmless feature was actually a huge issue, as it would mean many mortgage companies would refuse to lend on it – rendering their home unsellable.
She said: ‘Unfortunately, spray insulation has become a huge issue. Many mortgage companies refuse to lend on homes with it.
‘So, Paul and Anne Marie had to get the foam removed and replace a large portion of their roof.’
Kirstie Allsopp issued an urgent warning during last night’s episode of Love It Or List It about a little-known feature that could render your home unsellable
It was a huge blow for the couple, who were already on a tight budget for the work they wanted to complete.
Paul admitted it had slashed a huge third of their budget, making it a ‘tough pill’ to swallow.
As a result, the family had to scale back their renovations and weren’t able to complete the garage conversion in the garden as planned.
Anne Marie said: ‘There was a leak in our girl’s bedroom and we thought it might be quite an easy fix, but when they looked in the roof they found that we had spray foam insulation.
‘So in order to fix the leak, we had to remove the spray foam insulation, and that is what’s cost us thousands of pounds to fix.’
In November, the BBC reported that homeowners with spray foam insulation were struggling to sell their properties due to being rejected by major lenders.
It found that a quarter of the UK’s biggest mortgage providers were refusing loans if the insulation was found in the roof, including TSB, Skipton Building Society, Co-operative Bank, Principality and Aviva.
Others such as Lloyds, Nationwide, Barclays, Natwest and Santander said they would consider loans on a case-by-case basis.
After finding spray foam insulation in their roof, Anne-Marie and Paul were forced to spend thousands to remove it
In November, the BBC reported that homeowners with spray foam insulation were struggling to sell their properties. Pictured: The insulation found on Love It Or List It
Anne-Marie and her husband Paul admitted finding the insulation was a ‘tough pill’ to swallow
It’s thought that a whopping 250,000 homes in the UK – and much of it was installed under the government’s Green Homes Grant Scheme.
Concerns around spray foam insulation include poor fitting leaving moisture trapped in the roof, meaning structures are at risk of decay.
But many in the UK are unaware it is an issue and, crucially, that it now affects a property’s marketability.
Spray foam is used to insulate the roof, walls and floors. It is a liquid foam installed using a spray gun, meaning it can be added quickly and to hard-to-reach areas.
Viewers emphasised the importance of Kirstie’s warning, writing: ‘A great episode of #LIOLI this evening. I wonder how many people heard say about sprayed roof insulation making houses unsellable and realised their own roofs were covered in the stuff’;
‘That’s a wounder. But I’m surprised that didn’t come up on survey when they bought it.’;
‘You’ve made a profit, announces Kirsty, of 1k…. But not including the “1/3rd of a budget spent on the roof” (their budget was about 45k at the start…).’
During last night’s episode, business analyst Anne Marie and art director Paul had found themselves in a ‘four year conundrum’ with what to do about their property.
Viewers emphasised the importance of Kirstie’s warning and were sure many are unaware of the feature
At first the family just thought they had a leak (pictured), but things got worse after builders investigated
After having two children, Amelia, three, Remi, one, the house wasn’t working for them anymore.
The main issues were that Paul was having to commute 160 miles to his ‘dream job’ in Manchester, meaning he was away for a couple of nights each week.
At home on her own, Anne Marie was struggling to balance a full-time job with looking after the children in the cramped space.
They’d bought the ‘fixer-upper’ property six years ago when Anne Marie was pregnant with Amelia, but had never got round to renovating it.
With large rooms and a spacious garden, Anne Marie was reluctant to move out due to proximity to her friends and family.
But Paul said it was ‘falling to bits’ and ‘doesn’t work’ for the family.
He added: ‘It feels like we’re living in someone else’s home, 30 years ago.’
The current location meant he needed to stay a couple of nights each week in Manchester, leaving his daughter in floods of tears each time.
Love It Or List It viewers slammed the latest ‘disorganised’ couple to appear on the series
Paul’s twice-a-week 160-mile commute to Manchester for work left him wanting to move, but the pair have been debating it for four years as Anne-Marie wants to stay close to her family
The couple had outgrown their 1920s home (pictured), but Anne-Marie was reluctant to say goodbye
Anne Marie and Paul had a £475,000 list it budget, and £50,000 to renovate their house.
A year and a half after their first visit, Kirstie and Phil returned to the property to see it completely transformed with a newly-connected kitchen and dining area bringing a lot more light into the house.
They’d also finally added a bathtub in the family bathroom upstairs, making for an easier routine with the children.
Though Paul’s office was still a work in progress, both he and Anne-Marie had more space for themselves after previously working in the dining room and bedroom respectively.
Kirstie shared that their average pre-renovation valuation was £468,000, increasing to £523,000 after the work done.
The couple spent £54,000 – but crucially this didn’t include the major repairs done to the roof.
To the relief of Kirstie and Phil, as well as viewers at home, Anne-Marie and Paul confirmed they were indeed ‘listing’ the house and finally putting it on the market.
Anne-Marie, who had been determined to ‘love it’ and stay out admitted ‘things had moved on’ from when they first bought it – and both were looking forward to a fresh start.
Love It Or List It airs on Wednesdays at 8pm on Channel 4.