Japanese knotweed identified on survey

[OttilieKnackered]

Hello all.

As the title says really. Haven’t had the full survey back yet but EA has phoned to get ahead of it and vendors have already said they will pay full cost of removal.

Would you still go ahead? If so is there anything I need to get in writing?

I would be very worried about a bit being missed and it growing back! Maybe you should contact removal companies and ask if there work is guaranteed and how long for.
What if some appeared 5/15/20 years later? How long after removal would the vendors be prepared to pay again? I would be worried it would come back and affect the resale value.

Can Japanese Knotweed Lie Dormant?

Yes, a small fragment (the size of a thumbnail) of knotweed rhizome can lie dormant for up to 20 years and be viable for growth still. Things like housebuilding or extensive excavation can awaken the rhizome and will cause it to grow back quickly.

I would consider it depending where it was (that is NOT if it had gone near the foundations) but I would need the current owners to start the process and pay for the complete treatment in advance. I think the whole process can take up to three years to ensure it is irradiated.
The mortgage company may need some assurance and the insurance needs to accept that it has been dealt with properly.
Lookup 'japaneseknotweed.co.uk'

Good Luck

Also, see if the mortgage company have any preference for a removal company. Some will be better than others

When I sold my flat, JW appeared on my survey. It was simple enough to deal with, as my buyer remained logical about it and didn't panic. Fortunately I was share of freehold so was able to quickly organise to pay for its removal as well as a treatment plan. This covers the cost of a company coming back for a number of years to check the JW is still gone.

From identification it was only a couple of weeks to organise the first treatment and pay for the treatment plan so it didn't really delay things.

Ok all, this is reassuring so far, thank you.

Good point about the removal company. The EA has said that any removal process would be underwritten by insurance.

my 99 year old retired gardener neighbour laughs at the hysteria over this weed...its just an exscuse for companies to charge money and surveys etc...a con...spray it with diesel...it will be gone and never return...thats what he used to do....not charge 3k to remove as some do...!!

That might be because he's not going to live with consequences of it... 😁

I’d consider where it is in the garden and the size of the garden - the treatment plan will involve strong chemical weed killer and you’ll need to avoid the area with the knotweed and be careful that parts of the plant aren’t pulled off and dropped elsewhere e.g. if you have children living with you or visiting. The limitations on how we could use the garden during the treatment period - which lasts years - was a factor in us walking away from a purchase.

You also need to know where it’s coming in from and if the source is being treated.

There is also the option of digging it up to remove it but that can be very expensive and difficult depending on access to the garden, is there a side passage? I’d talk to the company that are lined up to treat it and ask what they think the best approach would be rather than the cheapest / minimum requirement to sell.

Stay calm, do some up to date research. It’s really not that big a deal anymore. Amazed your vendors are offering to pay for removal actually.

How long are you planning on staying?
It's not a worry - all overblown 'dangers' but could be a problem re-selling if it puts people off

We sold a property with JKW. The panic over it was worse than the problem itself.

We ended up getting a full excavation and weed membrane installed to make sure it was completely gone. But that's extreme!

It's completely rife where we are (SELondom) so buyers do have to be pragmatic or half the properties would be unsellable.

@ArcticSkewer probably 5-10 years. No kids yet but trying atm.

Re-selling is my main worry. The new RICS standards are basically less hysterical but can I rely on future prospective sellers knowing that?

Its a small garden on a terraced house so wherever it is won’t be far from the house.

I’m just a bit gutted as I finally felt we were progressing. 😞

Deal breaker for me. Not worth the issues reselling, even with a company insuring removal it will come up every time now on the property info form.

It is awful to get rid of (and be sure it is gone) and actually even when it’s gone it won’t actually be gone from memory. Which will impact who wants to buy it next time you come to sell.

ive been told that too by an experienced gardener ...... cut the stalks off and pour diesel down them.... might get one or two new ones pop up but keep on top of it and it will kill it. Diesels £10 a gallon.

The issue isn’t really whether we can keep it at bay. It’s whether we’d ever be able I sell
it on.

You have to declare it when you sell now.

We had it. We dug it out, took awhile but it can be done. The land our house was built on was originally woodland.

Neighbour also had it, original buyer pulled out but someone bought it and Council cleared it for free!

Sometimes it spreads so it's in a cluster of four or five gardens, so you have to coordinate treatment with your neighbours.

it's a no from me.
definito.

If you still want to buy it you’d really have to renegotiate on price as well as them paying the cost of removal, it will affect who will be willing to buy the house in the future whether that’s related to hysteria or well-founded concerns about the plant and how it grows.

I bought a london terraced house with knotweed. treated it myself with glyphosate weed killer gel (on the leaves so it only impacts that one plant) twice a year for 2 years. which is the same as the pro companies do but only costs £10. And now it is gone, no worries.

@parietal thank you. I’m fairly sanguine about actually treating it. I’m more worried about selling on.

My understanding is you would need to declare it if you sold on.

Firstly - where is it coming from/how prolific is it? (Can you take a ladder to look over fence /binoculars out of a first floor window to check neighbouring gardens?). Secondly check whether your lender is still happy to lend and what they require if so. If lender requires an eradication programme (most likely) then yes, vendor should pay. For anyone else who’s doing a search whilst thinking wtf do I do and comes across this thread just keep sticking glyphosate on it - as @parietal says, it works!

If you treat it and eradicate it. Then there’s no problem selling it on you just tick the no box on the Japanese knotweed question.

as others have said there’s far too much hysteria about it.

@Diyextension i’m pretty sure the question is about a history of knotweed, so we would still have to declare.