A Dundee dad says he has been unable to sell his home after Raac was found in the building.
Wayne Hoskins, 49, failed to sell his flat on Southampton Place at auction.
He claims this was due to the presence of Reinforced Autoclaved Aerated Concrete (Raac).
An initial offer on the Craigie property also fell through after the buyer was refused a mortgage because of the potentially dangerous concrete.
In a letter sent to homeowners in May, Dundee City Council said it “strongly suspected” Raac would be present in the building after inspections at neighbouring council-tenanted blocks.
However, the local authority added it “no longer has any ongoing maintenance responsibilities” for the building as each of its six flats are privately owned.
Dundee family unable to sell flat due to Raac in building
Wayne told The Courier: “Everyone in the block got a letter from the council telling us to get the roof checked out for Raac.
“There are six of us in the block and we all got together to get a structural engineer out.
“It came back that the roof was done in Raac.”
He continued: “We can either support the top two floors structurally or take the door off, but that is not financially feasible as it could cost six figures.
“One of our neighbours had his flat on the market and the sale fell through because the buyer couldn’t get a mortgage due to the Raac.
“He ended up selling to a buy-to-let company for around £30,000 less than the asking price.
“Then we decided to sell our flat and within three days had an offer, again it fell through because they couldn’t get a mortgage because of Raac.
“If we were council tenants the council would cover the costs of sorting it but won’t if you’re a private homeowner.
“I then put my property to auction when it wasn’t sold that way either; I set it at £85,000 but it only got up to £75,000 – well below the valued price of £100,000.”
Fears homes will be demolished as residents struggle to sell flats due to Raac
Wayne has lived in the first-floor flat with his wife, Yvette, and two children for 15 years.
He bought the property from another private homeowner but believes it was previously owned by the council.
The family and their neighbours have already split a £580 bill to have the roof surveyed, but have concerns a more invasive survey may be needed which would cost around £2,000.
Wayne believes he has been left stranded in his own home.
He added: “We have been left with a property that can’t be sold unless it is a cash buyer.
“It looks like the council will want us to survey it every six months.
“You would expect the council to get in touch and speak to people who have this issue.
“I chucked the first letter in the bin and thought it was a lot of rubbish; I think other people will have done the same.
“It may or may not go the way it has in Aberdeen with houses being demolished.”
Wayne has now set up a Dundee Raac Campaign Group on Facebook, which he hopes will highlight issues homeowners are facing.
A Dundee City Council spokesperson said: “Letters were sent to privately owned properties, notifying owners that inspections of blocks in the same development indicated the presence of Raac panels and they were likely present in their properties as well.
“We advised that they should engage with a structural engineer to carry out a visual inspection of the Raac to determine the frequency of reinspection or any remedial works required.
“The council has no ongoing maintenance responsibilities and no liability towards owners who bought their former council properties under the ‘right to buy’ scheme, or any subsequent owners.”
The council is facing an annual £70k inspection bill for hundreds of homes impacted by Raac.
The Courier has also taken a look at which buildings in Tayside and Fife still have Raac a year after the issue first emerged.
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