Japanese KnotWeed - in wimbledon Post Reply

[Chanchipolli]

Looking for some advice - so a house we viewed to purchase on the Wimbledon/Southfields Grid has confirmed Japanese Knotweed in the garden (confirmed via survey) - estate agents seem to pass this off as not really an issue, it is being treated etc. However, given that the street is a row of Victoria Terraces - I would bet money that it isn't just that house that has Japanese Knotweed but plenty of others in the area - so if it is treated on the house we viewed that doesn't mean it will disappear from the area as it is more likely to be not just at the end of the garden of one property.

Does anyone have any words of advice on this - should one steer clear? If you have dealt with a similar problem it would be good to hear that it can be treated or isolated etc

Thanks

[nuttymummy]

I think a major issue would be whether a mortgage provider would actually lend on a property with the knotweed in the garden. If you require a mortgage to buy I'd suggest you ask your broker/provider what their position on the subject is!

[Chanchipolli]

Thanks for the advice.

ON another note, has anyone dealt with knotweed before and can you be sure to get rid of it?

[NYE31]

There was a post on this a couple of weeks ago which recommended firms to eradicate Japanese knotweed.

[Hattie]

I've battled (and won) the Knotweed problem at my home. My land was infected from the railway yard next door. With their full co-operation, we have worked together for 5 years with a set up called Countryside Management and we seem to have killed it. It has to be treated twice a year, once in spring when growth is at its peak, and again in the autumn just to give it a double whammy as it settles back for the winter. This process has been long and pretty expensive (for the yard) but there has been no sign of it this year at all.

There was a programme on TV within the past 2-3 weeks about it which might be worth your looking up.

Yes, it will affect mortgage decisions if they are made aware of it. Yes it is massively damaging to foundations and yes, it is very hard to eradicate. It spreads along railway lines and river banks - presumably because neither are regularly treated and so it has a chance to totally invade.

If I were you, I'd make all this clear to the estate agents (who are wrong to say it is not a problem!) before walking away from this particular property.

Best of luck with your house search.

[Flora]

Hi

We get asked to advise and report on Japanese knotweed fairly often, including by people looking to buy a house where its been found in the garden.

the estate agents (who?!) are indeed wrong to say its not a problem as its a notifiable weed and there are various legal implications

if you are sure that its Japanese knotweed, then unless your heart is set on the house I would walk away as being easiest

of course it may not be japanese knotweed as there are similar looking plants - so if you do want to go ahead, then get this checked by a horticulturalist and a proper report written up, then you'll be covered for mortgage and insurance purposes

this is what we can offer and there are other trained people out there too
http://plewsgardendesign.co.uk/service/garden-sos/

[genevapr1]

This is a huge issue - most estate agents wouldn't even take on a house with knotweed in the first place. The stuff grows like crazy, definitely avoid!

[Chanchipolli]

Thanks everyone for your help/advice re Japanese Knotweed. It is most definitely japanese knotweed - confirmed in the survey. We have therefore decided to walk away. The worry is that unless it is dealt with asap it will infect all the surrounding houses on the grid!

What shocks me is the attitude of the estate agents - I know you shouldn't trust anything they say but they are in a position of "power" and flippant remarks don't help! They are just so sales focused and so pushy - willing to say anything to make the sale - buying a house is probably the biggest investment anyone of us will make … yet service is seriously bad. To be honest, I get better service at Waitrose when making my weekly shop!

Anyone else have anything good or bad to share re estate agents.

I would love to meet an estate agent who didn't talk rubbish most of the time, who wasn't 20+ years old, who actually knew the area and valued my custom a little - any one else with me?

Sorry for the rant, just feeling pretty

[Chanchipolli]

Thanks everyone for your help/advice re Japanese Knotweed. It is most definitely japanese knotweed - confirmed in the survey. We have therefore decided to walk away. The worry is that unless it is dealt with asap it will infect all the surrounding houses on the grid!

What shocks me is the attitude of the estate agents - I know you shouldn't trust anything they say but they are in a position of "power" and flippant remarks don't help! They are just so sales focused and so pushy - willing to say anything to make the sale - buying a house is probably the biggest investment anyone of us will make … yet service is seriously bad. To be honest, I get better service at Waitrose when making my weekly shop!

Anyone else have anything good or bad to share re estate agents.

I would love to meet an estate agent who didn't talk rubbish most of the time, who wasn't 20+ years old, who actually knew the area and valued my custom a little - any one else with me?

Sorry for the rant, just feeling pretty worn out and disillusioned by the whole process.

[Flora]

sorry you had such a poor experience :-{

good luck in finding ajapanese knotweed free house and garden

[Chanchipolli]

Thanks for your responses, advice and support

[mjwforsyth]

Interesting topic. Can you say the road /address that was affected (or at least the approx location within the grid)?. We are looking at other houses around there and would hate to end up next door!

[sloaney donkey]

You are right to run like crazy ! All the horror you read is true.

If you do not know what you are looking for, knotweed will eat away at a wall and kill your building before you know it. It is a disease !

It was introduced by the railway builders many years ago as a way of quickly covering newly excavated banks. But they didn't understand the implications and now it is a killer.

Treatment costs £000s a course and you will probably need several over a number of years to eradicate. You can be in trouble if you don't treat it quickly enough.

The property will be unsellable and you will be cornered when you fill out law society forms when you come to sell.

I would say just name the street, agent and property. If the survey has confirmed it and the agent has confirmed it, you have nothing to lose. You have not signed an NDA and I believe all the neighbours should know already.

Nothing like disclosure and exposure of any negligence or dishonesty to help others steer clear.

[liverbird in london]

Hi, both the Southfields and Wimbledon Park grids have an fairly active residents associations. The implications of having Japanese knotweed on one / both of the grids with so many terraced houses in close proximity is not great. I wonder if the next door neighbours of this property have been made aware?

I apreciate and completely understand your rationale for walking away but it would be much appreciated if you could share the name of the road where the case has been found so that the relevant residents association can make other residents aware and alert them to the potential problem.

[mdh]

I can recommend Steve Barron of Japanese Knotweed Eradication. He is a certified surveyor and gives free site surveys. Contact Steve on www.japaneseknotwood.london or 02087697321.