What counts as non-standard construction?
There is no single official list. Each lender maintains its own criteria, which is why one may lend where another refuses. The types most commonly treated as non-standard:
PRC (prefabricated reinforced concrete): post-war system-built housing including Airey, Cornish Unit, Woolaway, Wates, Reema, Unity and Orlit; many designated defective under the Housing Defects legislation. In-situ or poured concrete: including Wimpey No-Fines and Laing Easiform. Concrete panel systems: various 1960s and 1970s builds.
Including BISF (British Iron and Steel Federation) houses, common in post-war council stock.
Modern timber frame with a brick outer skin is usually acceptable to lenders. Older timber frame, or timber frame without a masonry outer leaf, often is not.
Thatch, and flat roofs covering more than a certain proportion of the property (commonly around 25% to 30% depending on the lender). Also cob, wattle and daub, single-skin brick, corrugated iron, asbestos cement sheeting, and prefabricated bungalows.
How to find out what yours is: the deeds or original planning documents, the local authority's records, a surveyor's report, or often simply the estate agent particulars from when you bought it. Ex-local authority properties from the 1940s to 1960s are the most likely candidates.
Why won't lenders lend?
Lenders assess a property as security for the loan. If they may need to repossess and sell, they want confidence it will be sellable and hold its value. Non-standard construction raises three concerns:
- Durability. Some systems, particularly certain PRC types, have documented structural problems as the concrete degrades around the steel reinforcement.
- Resale. A lender does not want security they would struggle to sell on. This is partly self-fulfilling: lenders refuse because resale is hard, and resale is hard because lenders refuse.
- Insurance. Some non-standard types are harder or more expensive to insure, which affects the property's viability as security.
The practical consequence is that around 70% of UK buyers, who need a mortgage, are removed from your market.
Designated defective properties
Certain PRC house types were formally designated as defective under the Housing Defects legislation of the 1980s. Designation was specific to named construction systems, and where a house has been repaired to an approved standard by a licensed contractor, it can usually be mortgaged again.
The document confirming that an approved structural repair scheme has been completed to standard. It transforms the property's saleability. With one, mainstream lenders will often lend. Without one, they generally will not.
If you own a designated PRC property:
- Establish whether a repair has already been done. Previous owners may have completed one. The certificate may be with the deeds, or the local authority may hold records.
- If repaired, locate the certificate. Its absence, even where the work was done, can block a sale. Reissue may be possible via the licensor or the original contractor.
- If not repaired, get a quote. Full PRC repair schemes are substantial works costing tens of thousands of pounds, but can add materially more than they cost by making the property mortgageable. Whether the arithmetic works depends on local values.
Not all non-standard construction is defective, and not all defective designation applies to every property of a given type. A structural survey by a surveyor experienced in the specific system is the reliable way to know what you have.
What is a non-standard property worth?
Typically 10% to 30% below an equivalent traditional property in the same area, though the range is wide and depends on:
- Whether it can be mortgaged at all. A property acceptable to specialist lenders sits far closer to normal value than one that is genuinely cash-only.
- The specific construction type. Modern timber frame with a brick skin carries almost no discount; unrepaired PRC carries the largest.
- Repair status. A PRC certificate can move a property from cash-only to mortgageable, the single biggest value lever available.
- Local market. Where non-standard stock is common, local buyers and lenders understand it and the discount narrows; where it is unusual, the discount widens.
- Condition otherwise. A well-maintained non-standard house sells better than a neglected one, as with anything.
Your routes to selling
Some lenders will consider non-standard construction, particularly building societies with local knowledge of the stock in their area. This route preserves most value, because it keeps some mortgage-dependent buyers in your market. Tell your estate agent to mention specialist lending in the particulars, since many buyers assume such a property is impossible to finance and do not enquire.
Private cash buyers, investors and cash buying companies purchase non-standard property regularly. Investors are often comfortable with construction types that alarm owner-occupiers, particularly for letting, where mortgageability on resale matters less. Faster and more certain, at a lower price.
Well suited to non-standard construction. The legal pack sets out the construction type and any defect designation upfront, buyers attending are typically cash or specialist-finance investors who understand the stock, and competitive bidding can beat a private treaty sale to a limited pool.
Where the property is a designated defective type and a repair scheme is available, completing the repair and obtaining certification converts a cash-only property into a mortgageable one. Do the arithmetic first: repair cost against the realistic uplift in local value. In lower-value areas the repair can cost more than it adds; in higher-value areas it often pays for itself several times over.
Still viable, particularly where the property is acceptable to specialist lenders. Expect a longer marketing period and a narrower buyer pool, and be upfront about the construction type, it will emerge at survey regardless, and a sale collapsing at that point wastes months.
Do you have to disclose the construction type?
Yes. The TA6 Property Information Form asks about the property, and sellers are under an obligation not to mislead buyers. Beyond the legal position, concealment is futile: any competent survey identifies non-standard construction, and any mortgage valuation will flag it. Disclosing upfront filters out buyers who cannot proceed before both sides spend money, which is better for everyone including you.
When a cash sale makes sense
- The property cannot be mortgaged and specialist lending is not available for it.
- A repair scheme is not economic in your local market.
- You need certainty, having had a sale collapse at survey or mortgage valuation.
- The property is tenanted or inherited and you want a clean exit.
- You cannot fund the repair and it is blocking the sale.
We buy non-standard construction property across Oldham and within 20 miles, including PRC, BISF steel frame, concrete panel and timber frame, both repaired and unrepaired. We assess each property individually rather than refusing whole categories. We will need the construction type if you know it, whether any repair scheme has been completed, and any certificate you hold. If you do not know what you have, tell us the address and approximate build year and we can usually identify it. If your property turns out to be acceptable to specialist lenders, we will say so, because an estate agent sale will likely net you more.
Got a non-standard property to sell?
Get a free cash offer. We buy PRC, steel frame, concrete panel and timber frame, repaired or not, assessing each property on its own merits, and we will tell you if a specialist-lender sale would net you more.
Get a free cash offer Frequently asked questions
What is non-standard construction?
Any property not built with traditional brick or stone walls and a slate or tile roof. Includes prefabricated reinforced concrete, steel frame, some timber frame, concrete panel systems, thatched roofs and properties with substantial flat roof areas.
Can you get a mortgage on a non-standard construction house?
Sometimes. Mainstream lenders generally refuse, but specialist lenders and some building societies consider certain types, particularly where a property has been repaired and certified. A broker experienced in non-standard construction is the person to ask.
Can you sell a concrete house in the UK?
Yes, though the buyer pool is narrower. Concrete houses sell to cash buyers, investors, specialist-lender buyers and at auction. Where the property is a designated defective type that has been repaired and certified, mainstream lending often becomes available.
What is a PRC certificate?
Documentation confirming that an approved structural repair scheme has been completed to standard on a prefabricated reinforced concrete property by a licensed contractor. It is usually what makes such a property mortgageable, and its presence or absence is the biggest single factor in value.
How much less is a non-standard construction house worth?
Typically 10% to 30% below an equivalent traditional property, varying widely by construction type, repair status, local market and whether any lender will consider it. Modern timber frame with a brick outer skin carries almost no discount; unrepaired PRC carries the most.
Is a BISF house a good buy?
BISF steel frame houses are generally structurally sound and were built to a reasonable standard, but attract limited lender appetite. They can be a sound purchase for a cash buyer or investor, and often represent good value per square foot, with the trade-off being a narrower market when reselling.
How do I find out if my house is non-standard construction?
Check the deeds and original planning documents, the estate agent particulars from when you bought it, or the local authority's records. A surveyor can identify the construction type definitively. Ex-local authority properties built between the 1940s and 1960s are the most likely candidates.
Do I have to tell buyers about the construction type?
Yes. It is asked on the TA6 Property Information Form and you must not mislead buyers. It would emerge at survey in any event, so disclosing upfront saves both sides wasted time and cost.
Bottom line
Non-standard construction limits your buyer pool rather than making the property unsellable. The critical question is whether any lender will lend, because that determines whether you are selling to a wide market at a modest discount or to cash buyers only at a larger one.
Establish exactly what construction type you have and whether any repair scheme has been completed. For designated defective PRC types, obtaining certification is often the single most valuable thing you can do, though only where local values justify the cost. If the property is genuinely cash-only and a repair is not economic, a cash buyer or auction is the realistic route.