Who is responsible for advising purchasers that a road is private/unadopted?

[Mike88]

There are two separate financial issues.

One is the one off capital cost of bringing roads up to a standard.

The second is the continuing maintenance cost.

You might be able to negotiate with the local authority that if you and your neighbours ensure the road is brought up to standard then the council takes over the maintenance.

The problem here is that the standard is set by the local authority and I know just from the cost of having a footway crossing that their requirements are very high. I don't think it's as easy as filling in a few potholes.

[johnhemming]

The problem here is that the standard is set by the local authority and I know just from the cost of having a footway crossing that their requirements are very high. I don't think it's as easy as filling in a few potholes.

I think you are right about this. They would be quite picky about what was involved in getting the road adopted. However, there is always the question as to what happens in the mean time.