Are weeds killing your mortgage chances?

Hi KD, we have some advice on property haggling here (http://www.which.co.uk/money/mortgages-and-property/guides/buying-a-house/making-an-offer-on-a-house-or-flat/) which may be of some use to you.

It’s probably worth seeking a quote from specialist in Japanese Knotweed to help you in your decision and negotiations.

Hello KD – I would withdraw the offer, get the sellers to carry out the treatment plan at their expense, and possibly make a new offer at 10% below the original asking price [subject to survey and mortgage approval] if you still felt comfortable with buying the house. If you have already paid [or agreed to pay] a mortgage arrangement fee see if you can get the sellers to reimburse it. Also it would be advisable to check the insurability of the property and whether or not the premium would be loaded. There is no doubt that the estate agent should have brought the presence of the Japanese Knotweed to the attention of prospective purchasers since they were clearly aware of it. An interesting question to them would be what part it played in their valuation of the property.

Can you be sure that the treatment of the existing Japanese Knotweed will be permanent and that a further outcrop might not appear? – see if there is any in neighbouring gardens or areas from which it could spread. It says in the Intro that it needs repeated treatment over several years – are you content with that? And do you mind the property being ‘blighted’ for such a period? Disappointing though it might be, don’t be afraid to walk away from the purchase. If you do receive satisfactory assurances and acceptance of a revised offer you can still withdraw right up to exchange of contracts [although you would be liable for any legal costs incurred on your side]. Don’t be worried about another prospective purchaser coming in with a higher bid; the chances are that the estate agent will have to be much more upfront about the existence of the JK if the property goes back on the market and that will inhibit stronger interest. Sellers can’t honestly cover-up the presence of JK in a house sale because it is specifically declarable in the Property Information Form and therefore part of the Contract; you would be bound by that too if you proceeded to purchase and subsequently wished to sell. Even at a lower price a ‘dream home’ might have an irradicable blemish and on balance you might be better off leaving it to someone else to worry about while you pursue your quest for a nice new home – they do exist.

Hello Alison. A nice dilemma.

Someone will buy that house even if you don’t. The price might have to drop a bit but it will eventually sell, knotweed or not. Most people would probably say “leave it alone, there’s bound to be another house you’ll like as much on the market before too long”, but if I were in your shoes I would go for it – on the right terms. The sellers obviously know that they are sitting on a depreciating asset and must be expecting a reduced offer. However much of a bargain it seems to be at the asking price I would put in an offer at least ten percent lower and see the reaction. You can withdraw it and go lower if your offer is snapped up without demur. Don’t be frightened – they need you more than you need them [make sure you don’t overdo your liking of the house]. But you must go into this on the expectation that you will have to fork out for the removal of the JKW. Any offer is still subject to contract and can be withdrawn right up to that point [although you will be liable for your own legal and other expenses] so you should use the time after acceptance of your offer to talk to the man next door and see how amenable he would be to your taking full responsibility for eradication of the knotweed. A legal agreement with him might be helpful, entered into in a conciliatory manner with a view to being cooperative on both sides throughout. Some would suggest that you try to put a charge on his property for the expense of doing that but you need to be careful how hard you push, and anyway, if you get the right price with the seller, why upset someone who could be the way out of your dilemma? Of course, he might have no cares about the future resale value of his property, resent any interference, and be disinclined to go forward with you on that basis, in which case it probably would be better to walk away because JKW can, and will, only get worse and the surveyors’, valuers’and lenders’ antipathy to it will only harden.

I certainly think it would pay you to get a professional estimate of the cost of destroying your prospective neighbour’s knotweed and I think it would be reasonable to expect the sellers to deal with their neighbour along those lines in the first instance. If they won’t or can’t you might be able to persuade him. A professional report on the extent of the problem and the cost of a treatment plan will help both yourselves and the sellers in negotiating an acceptable price for the property. Please don’t get so carried way with desire for the property that you throw caution to the winds; there are plenty of houses on the market, nearly all of them without this problem. But if you can get the house you like, at the right price, with a solution to the problem within your overall budget, and end up with an amenable and grateful neighbour it is worth going for. If your husband still disagrees I think you should give him the benefit of the doubt and let this one go.

Makes the referendum question seem easy, doesn’t it?