Maple tree 2-3m from house

carolineb23

We have found the perfect house but have hit a stumbling block with regards to the tall maple tree which is in the front garden. It's as tall as the house (2 storey) and the trunk is no more than 2/3 metres away from the front of the house. The tree has no preservation order on it. We really love the house but would really really love it if the tree wasn't there as we feel it is far too close to the house. We are thinking of making an offer subject to the tree being properly removed. Having never made an offer with "conditions" attached to it I'm a little unsure as to whether this is reasonable or not. Any advice would be welcome!
Thanks.

pinkteapot

Personally I would reduce my offer by the amount that it would cost me to get it removed. I'd want to ensure it was done properly.

For a house with a tree that close, I would also have a full buildings survey, and a CCTV drains survey. Tree roots can do terrible damage to drains so it's worth checking out.

Some mortgage companies don't like to lend if a tree is within a certain distance of a house so you'd have to check that out with your lender/broker.

carolineb23

Thanks, that was also a concern of mine regarding the mortgage. It's such a pain as it really is the perfect house for us apart from this tree.

martinsurrey

DONT get other people to take a tree down for you.

taking it down incorrectly can do more damage than leaving it up (and I'm not talking about the tree falling on the house)

http://uk.ask.com/question/what-is-ground-heave

best to get it done yourself, properly.

carolineb23

Ok, I am inclined to agree about not letting anyone else do it. However, I don't really want to start spending money on full structural surveys (on a 23 year old house) drain surveys etc, plus whatever other unknown issues which may be discovered once the tree is down so I think we are going to walk away...

moneyistooshorttomention

But wouldn't you kick yourself in years to come if you had passed on the perfect house just because of a tree that you have the ability to take down?

Personally, I'd get a drain survey done and see if it passed muster. If it passes muster okay after that survey, then go ahead and buy the house and remove the tree yourself.

Drain survey and tree removal together would likely come to somewheres around £500/£600. Not worth losing THE house for the sake of that amount of money....

Dan-Dan

carolineb23 wrote: »

Ok, I am inclined to agree about not letting anyone else do it. However, I don't really want to start spending money on full structural surveys (on a 23 year old house) drain surveys etc, plus whatever other unknown issues which may be discovered once the tree is down so I think we are going to walk away...

This is a strange attitude , it`s the `perfect` house yet you wont invest in finding out?

what happens if the next house you find , DOESNT have a tree 3 meters away so you wahck £600 on a survey and find it needs a new boiler and has subsidence?

As money says , a CCTV survey , looking at about £90-£110 , money potetnially worth spending!

pinkteapot

Two possible issues - the first with the drains is cheap to look into, as others have said. Even if that's clear, you'll still need a survey to tell you whether the tree has caused any subsidence or heave. You *may* be alright with a Homebuyers rather than full buildings, but others on here may know better than me...

I agree with the others though that if it's perfect in every other regard then it's worth looking into further. You could easily find a perfect house and then have serious issues come up in the survey...

fishpond

Have the tree taken down when you own the house--estimated cost £400-£500.
Just cost me £420 for a 13 metre specimen.
(a lot cheaper than I thought and it took 33 minutes)
Ensure they are a legit company!

moneyistooshorttomention

MYGAWD....Dan Dan is obviously feeling ill, as he has just agreed with me about something.

Maybe he's got heatstroke? Maybe it's something worse?

You sure you don't need to schedule in a visit to a good medic Dan?:rotfl:Maybe Phoebe is right and he "loves me really"....

carolineb23

Its not really about not wanting to invest the money Dan Dan, it's that I don't want to set my heart on it and then find its got loads of issues due to the tree :-( From the research I've done online it seems getting rid of a tree might actually cause more problems and I guess it's a bit like peeling the wallpaper off and not knowing if the wall's going to fall down when you do.
Of course there is the possibility I'm over thinking things here :-)
The drain survey is a good idea, I will have a look into the possibility of having that done.
It's actually a lovely tree, I just can't get over how close it is to the house!
Thanks for your suggestions and comments.