Last year the Telegraph reported that house sellers had been forced to spend thousands of pounds eradicating Japanese knotweed from their land after finding their homes had become virtually unsellable because potential buyers were being turned down for mortgages.

At Phlorum we are increasingly being contacted by home buyers affected by Japanese knotweed who are reporting that mortgage lenders are insisting that they will only approve an application if the Japanese knotweed on the property is removed by a professional.

Having had discussions recently with HSBC and a few of our contacts in the mortgage sector, it seems that many lenders are still resolutely refusing to lend on any property that has been identified as being affected by Japanese knotweed.

Those lenders who are more likely to lend on properties affected by Japanese knotweed will generally only do so after considering a valuer’s comments, but usually, if knotweed is mentioned, they will not want to lend.

One area lenders will definitely not lend where knotweed is present is for Buy-to-let Mortgages.

Natwest and HSBC seem to be the most amenable lenders where Japanese knotweed is concerned. If a surveying valuer’s comments suggest that the knotweed could effectively be treated, then they will seek to deduct the cost of this from the value of the property. However, they will still want some form of guarantee or warranty once the knotweed has been cleared.

Further information on identifying and treating Japanese knotweed can be found here.

We would be interested to hear if you have any experience of mortgage lenders refusing to lend on properties affected by Japanese knotweed. Email or call us on 01273 704449.

Japanese knotweed canes in winter

It seems an unlikely scenario but weeds can stop you getting a mortgage, or so it seems from an article in the Metro last month.

Dave Williams from Cornwall has tried to borrow £83,000 from Santander but has been turned down because of a small amount of Japanese knotweed on a piece of land that he bought recently to extend his garden. Although Mr Williams believes that had this been winter the surveyor would not have noticed, it is likely a diligent surveyor would have seen the dead canes that are evident in the winter.

He could treat the knotweed with a suitable weed killer and eventually it will die with perserverance. Patience is the key; do not be tempted to cut it back or dig it up as the roots will spread even without any leaf.  If there is no building work  planned on the area, it doesn’t have to be a big problem.

However, if Mr Williams is thinking of developing his garden, then he has a problem as Japanese knotweed can grow through concrete and tarmac. Currently, throughout the British Isles, it  is causing the construction industry substantial financial concerns running into millions of pounds in costs to eradicate the dreaded weed.

Jane

Japanese knotweed damages property

According to the Telegraph, house sellers have been forced to spend thousands of pounds eradicating Japanese knotweed from their land after finding their homes had become virtually unsellable because potential buyers were being turned down for mortgages.

Lenders claim Japanese knotweed, which is capable of pushing through concrete, poses a risk to the structure and fabric of the building, and so reduces the value of a property.

Mortgage lenders are now beginning to insist that they will approve an application only if the Japanese knotweed on the property is removed and the homeowner obtains a written guarantee from the environmental control company to say it has been eradicated.

Japanese knotweed first escaped into the British countryside in the mid-19th century after being brought over from Japan as an ornamental garden plant.

The plant normally grows in the poor, rocky soils and on the slopes of volcanoes in Japan. Without natural pests and diseases, however, Japanese knotweed has become highly successful in the UK and it is capable of regenerating from just a tiny fragment.

The bamboo-like stems, which grow up to 12 feet tall, can push through concrete and can damage buildings. Japanese knotweed also has an extensive underground root system, called a rhizome, which make it difficult to destroy with herbicides.

This makes Japanese knotweed extremely difficult and expensive to eradicate from an area as the roots often need to be completely dug up and the contaminated soil disposed of. Cheaper herbicide spraying can be used provided the soil is treated.

Japanese knotweed is now so prevalent in the UK that according to official records there is now not a single 6 mile square in the country where it is not present and it is only considered to be absent from the Orkney Islands.

A spokesman for Santander, the country’s biggest mortgage provider through its ownership of Abbey and Alliance & Leicester, said:

“Due to the invasive and destructive nature of Japanese Knotweed, if the weed is found in close proximity to the property we would need to assess whether or not a mortgage could be accepted.”