Selling a house with subsidence

On this page

1. Which kind of subsidence
2. Do I have to declare it?
3. Evidence buyers ask for
4. Insurance for the buyer
5. How lenders see it
6. What it does to the price
7. Which route works

Suspected, active, repaired, or heave

A house with subsidence is at one of four stages: a crack nobody has investigated, movement being monitored now, a repair done years ago, or heave. Buyers, their lenders and their insurers treat each differently, so the first job is to say accurately which you have.

Subsidence is the ground beneath a building sinking and pulling its foundations down, often on clay soils, near trees, over old mine workings or where drains leak.⁴ It is not the same as settlement, the normal bedding-in of a building.⁵ Heave, the ground moving upward, and landslip are usually covered alongside subsidence in buildings insurance.³

When a crack is worth a closer look

• 3mm Wider than this and appearing suddenly: the point at which RICS says cracks give real cause for concern⁵
• 10p coin Thicker than this, diagonal and wider at the top: signs the ABI lists as worth investigating⁴

Neither is a diagnosis. At the suspicion stage, an investigation before you market the house turns a question the buyer's surveyor would raise into a documented answer.

Do I have to declare subsidence when selling?

Yes, in practice. The Law Society's property information form, the TA6 (6th edition), is the questionnaire you complete for the buyer's solicitor. It asks whether you have made any buildings insurance claims, with dates and how they were resolved. It also asks whether insurance has ever been difficult to get or subject to special conditions.¹ A subsidence claim, or a policy with a higher subsidence excess (the part of a claim you pay yourself), answers both. The form tells sellers to answer truthfully and completely from their own knowledge, and to tell their solicitor if anything changes before the sale.¹

The risk of getting this wrong falls on you after completion. The form itself warns that buyers can rely on the answers and may claim compensation for misleading information.¹ Under the Misrepresentation Act 1967, a seller whose false statement led a buyer into the contract is liable for damages. That liability falls away if the seller proves they had reasonable grounds to believe the statement was true.² Answering "not known" when you do know, or leaving out a claim, is not a safe middle course.

What to say about subsidence on the property information form

• Have you made a buildings insurance claim, or had insurance that was difficult to get or came with special conditions?
• Yes Declare it on the form Give the dates and how each claim was resolved. A subsidence claim, or a policy with a higher subsidence excess, answers both questions.¹ Gather the evidence
• No Do you know of movement, or suspect it from cracks?
• Yes Answer from what you know Answering not known when you do know is not a safe middle course. If you only suspect movement, have it investigated before the house goes on the market.¹ Which kind of subsidence
• No Answer truthfully and completely Answer from your own knowledge, and tell your solicitor if anything changes before the sale.¹

Reports and evidence buyers and lenders ask for

The strongest position is a complete file that shows the cause, what was done and that movement stopped. Gather what your insurer, its engineers and any contractor produced:

• the insurer's claim correspondence, including acceptance of the claim and the settlement
• the structural engineer's or loss adjuster's investigation reports, stating the cause
• monitoring records showing when movement stopped⁵
• the repair specification: underpinning, drain repairs, tree removal or crack repair
• a completion sign-off, often called a certificate of structural adequacy, which is an engineer's written confirmation of the repair, and any guarantee for the work
• your current policy schedule, showing whether subsidence is covered and the excess⁷

Where the file has gaps, a structural engineer's report you commission yourself can fill them. It costs money up front. In return, you set out the evidence yourself instead of waiting for a buyer's surveyor to raise it.

Buildings insurance for the buyer after a subsidence claim

A buyer cannot usually complete with a mortgage unless the house is insured, so insurability often decides the sale. The ABI says the existing insurer may continue cover. Elsewhere, a property with subsidence history usually faces higher premiums or different terms, and the ABI suggests a specialist broker found through BIBA, the brokers' trade association.⁶ Ask your insurer early whether it would offer cover to a buyer, and on what terms. A buyer who can take over existing cover avoids the question of whether any other insurer will quote.

Timing matters when insurers change. Under the ABI's agreement between insurers, a claim notified within eight weeks of switching is handled by the previous insurer.⁶ Claims notified between eight weeks and a year after the switch are shared between the insurers, and after a year the new insurer handles them.³ Expect a higher subsidence excess than for other claims. Aviva's policy wording, for example, applies a separate subsidence excess shown on the schedule.⁷

Which insurer handles a subsidence claim after a switch

When the claim is notifiedWho handles it

1. Within eight weeks of switching Who handles it: The previous insurer.⁶
2. Between eight weeks and a year after the switch Who handles it: Shared between the previous and the new insurer.³
3. More than a year after the switch Who handles it: The new insurer.³

How mortgage lenders treat subsidence

Lenders want to know whether the movement has stopped and whether the house has buildings insurance that covers subsidence. Lender conditions for conveyancers commonly require that cover. The Help to Buy equity loan handbook, for example, requires buildings insurance to cover subsidence, heave and landslip.⁸ What a lender does when its valuer sees signs of movement is for that lender to decide, and we could not find a single published standard covering all of them.

So the more complete your evidence file and the more certain the insurance, the wider the pool of mortgage buyers who can proceed. With active movement or no insurance offer, expect most buyers to be cash buyers.

If your file cannot show what caused the movement and that it has stopped, close that gap before you list, with a structural engineer’s report if you need one. Monitoring can run for 12 months or longer, so where movement is still being measured, either allow for that time or plan on a buyer who does not need a mortgage.

How much does subsidence reduce a house price?

No source The House Desk found measures the reduction with a date and a method, so we print no percentage. Four things move the discount:

• Stage. Suspected or active movement leaves the buyer carrying the uncertainty. Documented, repaired movement narrows it.
• Insurance. A buyer who can get cover on normal terms can borrow. One who cannot is limited to cash, and prices accordingly.
• Cause and repair. A leaking drain that was fixed reads differently from clay soil and large trees that remain.
• The local market. In areas where subsidence claims are common, buyers and agents are more used to the paperwork.

Which route works for a house with subsidence?

With a complete file and insurance available, the open market is usually worth trying first, because mortgage buyers can still proceed. Active movement or uncertain cover changes that. The buyers who remain mostly do not need a lender, which points to auction or a direct buyer.

How the evidence changes who can buy

Repaired, documented, insurable Active movement or uncertain cover

Who can buy Repaired, documented, insurable: Mortgage and cash buyers Active movement or uncertain cover: Mainly cash buyers

Insurance Repaired, documented, insurable: Normal terms, so a buyer can borrow Active movement or uncertain cover: Without cover, a buyer usually cannot borrow

Route to try first Repaired, documented, insurable: The open market, with full disclosure Active movement or uncertain cover: An auction or a direct buyer

Disclosure Repaired, documented, insurable: The same on every route Active movement or uncertain cover: The same on every route

Your price through each route starts from your own figure and sets the three routes side by side.

Who buys a house with subsidence?

All three need the same disclosure. They differ in whether a buyer needs a lender.

Not sure which fits? Answer three questions and we will suggest one.

Estate agent

Works best for repaired subsidence with a complete file and insurance a buyer can take over.

Suits

Historic, repaired, insurable

Watch

Sales collapsing at the survey or lender stage

Estate agents

Auction

Buyers bid knowing the history, usually in cash. The legal pack carries the disclosure.

Suits

Active movement, missing evidence, a firm date

Watch

Seller fees and a realistic reserve

Selling at auction

House-buying company

No lender involved, so the sale does not depend on a mortgage valuation. Expect the price to reflect the risk.

Suits

Uninsurable or unrepaired houses, sellers who need certainty

Watch

Offer reductions after the company's own survey

House-buying companies

Read more on the ways to sell and selling at auction. If you choose auction, how an auction reserve price works helps you set a floor that allows for the history.

Sources

(8)

Numbers in the text link to these. Each was read on the date shown. How we research

1. TA6 Property information form (6th edition) (2025) The Law Society. Trade or professional body. England and Wales. Read 14 September 2026.
2. Misrepresentation Act 1967, section 2 legislation.gov.uk. Legislation. England and Wales. Read 14 September 2026.
3. Subsidence Association of British Insurers. Trade or professional body. UK. Read 14 September 2026.
4. How subsidence can affect your home: what you need to know Association of British Insurers. Trade or professional body. UK. Read 14 September 2026.
5. Subsidence (consumer guide) Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors. Trade or professional body. UK. Read 14 September 2026.
6. Getting insurance after a subsidence claim Association of British Insurers. Trade or professional body. UK. Read 14 September 2026.
7. Your Aviva Online and Aviva Premium Home Insurance Policy (policy wording) Aviva Insurance Limited. Company's own published information. UK. Read 14 September 2026.
8. Equity Mortgage Lender's Handbook for Conveyancers (Help to Buy 2021 to 2023), accessible version Homes England, GOV.UK. Government guidance. England. Read 14 September 2026.