Buying a new house is expensive enough without having to fork out for costly, unexpected repairs.

Unfortunately, if you buy a house in the summer, unwanted surprises can start to crop up in the winter months when bad weather sets in.

Cold temperatures, heavy rain and snow all put your home to the test – revealing weaknesses you might not have noticed earlier.

We’re here to reveal the warning signs you should look out for when viewing properties in the summer, paying special attention to these five things will help you prepare for later in the year.

In the drier summer months, it can be difficult to detect a leaky roof. However, in the lashing winter rain, you’ll wish you’d checked the condition of the roof.

The causes of a leaky roof can be varied, and solutions range from relatively low-cost fixes like unclogging gutters, to eye-watering structural repairs.

Removing and replacing a hip roof could cost more than £15,000.

Warning signs to look for

1. Missing or damaged roof tiles
2. Water stains on interior walls
3. Curling shingles
4. Grains of roof tile in the gutters
5. Sagging rafters

Do your due diligence when surveying the boiler.

Boilers always break down at the worst possible moment and nobody wants to end up without any heating or hot water in mid-January.

Most boilers have a lifespan of around 10-15 years, but things can go wrong. The cost of buying and installing a new boiler is likely to be around £4,000 – even more if you want to relocate it.

You’re looking at around £12,000 if you want to invest in a biomass boiler which, although much more economical in the long run, has a higher upfront cost.

Warning signs to look for:

1. Leaks
2. Dropping pressure
3. No pilot light
4. Cold areas on radiators
5. Banging or gurgling noises

Guttering is used to direct rainwater away from the base of the building, protecting the foundation – essential for your home’s structural wellbeing.

In winter, when the UK gets up to 100mm of rain each month, it’s essential your gutters do this vital job effectively.

The cost of replacing guttering varies significantly dependent on the size of your property, but you’re likely to fork out around £700 per 15 metres – although this could more than double if you want to upgrade to more durable cast iron gutters.

Warning signs to look for:

1. Leaking joints
2. Overflowing gutters
3. Water pooling around the base

Ill-fitting windows are something you won’t usually notice until you move in.

Unfortunately, issues such as damp and water damage will quickly become apparent in the winter, and even just one draughty window can have a huge impact on the energy efficiency of your home.

Replacing just one double-glazed uPVC window will set you back around £730. Of course, this price will be even higher if you have sash windows or want wood or aluminium frames. Generally, if one window is faulty, it’s likely others will be too.

Warning signs to look for:

1. Visible gaps
2. Water damage
3. Draughts
4. Condensation between the panels
5. Difficulty closing

Attic insulation prevents heat being lost from the roof of your home. An insufficiently insulated attic can be a serious money pit, especially in winter when temperatures plummet.

There are multiple options when it comes to insulating your roof space from loose fill to spray foam and from blanket insulation to thermal foil.

Insulating a detached house with blanket insulation can cost upwards of £600, including labour

Warning signs to look for:

1. Thin insulation
2. Signs of pests in the roof
3. High energy bills
4. Moisture or mould
5. Fluctuating internal temperatures

Obviously, one of the first things you should do is move furniture and valuables out of harm’s way.

Move all that you can into a dry room and drape anything else with waterproof coverings.

Place an empty bucket under the leak. You may want to put an old rag or tea towel in the bottom to avoid that annoying dripping sound.

Remember, depending on the severity of the leak, you may have to empty this bucket as it fills up.

This seems counter intuitive, but you want to minimise the extent of the water damage.

Use a screwdriver to pierce a hole for the water to escape through.

This provides an exit point for the water, so it doesn’t disperse across the ceiling. If you don’t do this, the entire ceiling could collapse.

If you’re confident you know where the rainwater is getting in and can safely get onto the roof, you may want to consider covering the external surface with a tarpaulin.

Of course, in many cases this isn’t safe and you should call a professional.

As we all know, water and electricity aren’t exactly best mates. As soon as everything’s dried out, you’ll need a qualified electrician to check over and replace any broken wiring.

If your room needs rewiring, this could cost thousands.

Plasterboard is the panelling on walls and ceilings. It offers fire protection, acoustic insulation and improves thermal efficiency so it is super important.

Due to its porous nature, after a ceiling leak, you’ll often need to replace at least part of the plasterboard.

If you have to replace the whole lot, it’s likely to set you back around £350.

Plaster is the finish applied to a wall or ceiling before decoration. Often, after a leak, plaster will start to bubble, flake or even crumble as it dries out. It is a skilled job and therefore can be expensive.

The cost to plaster a ceiling could be anything up to £1,000.

After the plastering, your ceiling will have to be redecorated. If the room was painted fairly regularly, you might be able to get away with just painting the ceiling but you may need to repaint the whole space.

An experienced decorator is likely to charge around £500 to redecorate a large room, even more if the job involves wallpapering.

Fingers crossed, you managed to save all your furniture and valuables. But if you didn’t, replacing all these items could be hugely expensive.

The cost to replace a couple of sofas, a television and soft furnishings could be well into the thousands.