Free resources and advice for non-traditional homes

01The designated defective list (England and Wales)

The housing defects legislation, now Part XVI of the Housing Act 1985 (legislation.gov.uk), allows types of home to be designated as defective. The types on the national list, which applies in England and Wales (SI 1988/923), as listed to Parliament on 7 February 1989 (Hansard), are:

Airey · Boot · Boswell · Cornish Unit · Dorran · Dyke · Gregory · Myton · Newland · Orlit · Parkinson · Reema Hollow Panel · Schindler and Hawksley SGS · Smith · Stent · Stonecrete · Tarran · Underdown · Unity and Butterley · Waller · Wates · Wessex · Winget · Woolaway

The national designations apply in England and Wales. Scotland's separate designations were repealed from 30 July 2018 (Scottish Government).

02Repair certificates for PRC homes, and what to do if one is missing

What they are. Between 1985 and 1996, PRC Homes Ltd (an NHBC subsidiary) licensed repair schemes for designated house types. Approved parties issued certificates of completion, which lenders accepted (BRE PN262).

Why they go missing. BRE says the lack of a central register of completion certificates "has resulted in difficulties for sale and resale of properties where certificates have been lost" (BRE PN262).

The current scheme. BRE Global's PRC Homes Repair Scheme keeps a Register of Practitioners, a Register of Repair Specifications and a Register of Properties. A Certificate of Structural Repair is only valid when it is registered and carries its registration number (BRE PN262; BRE).

If yours is missing:

1. Ask the seller, your solicitor and the original council or housing association for a copy.
2. Check whether the house appears on BRE's Register of Properties.
3. Ask your lender what it will accept. Be aware that some lenders do not accept retrospective certificates: Gatehouse Bank, for example, says certification issued after the original repair date "is not considered acceptable" (Gatehouse Bank).
4. Remember the adjoining home. Several lenders want attached homes repaired to the same standard (NatWest; Leeds BS).

03Buyer's checklist for a non-traditional home

• Which construction type do the particulars or the seller say it is? Who confirmed it?
• Is the type on the designated list? If so, has it been repaired, by whom, and when?
• Is there a repair certificate and guarantee? Is it registered?
• Has the adjoining home (semi or terrace) been repaired to the same standard?
• Any later work: recladding, external wall insulation, cavity fill, extensions? Paperwork and building control sign-off?
• Has your lender or broker confirmed in writing that the type is acceptable and what report, if any, they need?
• Have you booked a survey with someone experienced in this type before you commit?

A printable PDF version of this checklist is planned.

04Checks an owner can do safely

• Look, don't dig: note cracks, rust stains or loose render from ground level and photograph them with dates.
• Keep gutters and downpipes clear so water does not run down walls.
• Do not drill, cut or remove cladding to "find out". Older buildings may contain asbestos: the HSE says buildings built or refurbished before 2000 may contain it (HSE).

05How many non-traditional homes are there?

• England, 2011: 1,208,000 non-traditional dwellings, 5.3% of the stock (concrete or steel load-bearing structure) (EHS 2011). This is the most recent explicit English figure we have found.
• Wales, 2017-18: 8% of dwellings, made up of 4% timber or steel frame and 4% concrete (WHCS 2017-18).
• Right to Buy: England recorded 9,236 Right to Buy sales in 2024-25 (GOV.UK). In Wales, Right to Buy was abolished on 26 January 2019 (Welsh Government).

06Glossary

Non-traditional / non-standard construction

Homes not built with conventional masonry walls, for example poured concrete, precast concrete, steel frame or large panel systems.

PRC

Precast reinforced concrete: concrete parts with steel inside, made off site and assembled.

No-fines concrete

Concrete made without sand or other fine aggregate (Concrete Society).

In-situ concrete

Concrete poured on site into formwork, rather than made in a factory.

Large panel system (LPS)

Buildings made from storey-height precast concrete panels joined on site (BRE).

Designated defective

A house type designated under the housing defects legislation, now Part XVI of the Housing Act 1985.

Carbonation

A slow chemical change in concrete that can reduce its protection of steel reinforcement.

Retrospective certificate

A certificate issued some time after repair work, rather than at the time. Not all lenders accept them.

07How we write and check these guides

• Every fact links to its source; lender criteria show the date we read them.
• We don't publish prices, grants or lender views we haven't read ourselves.
• Spotted a mistake? Tell us through the contact page and we'll correct it and note the change.