Selling a house with knotweed

sxcizme3010

They had a company out to give a quote to treat and remove it over 2 years. To completely eradicate it from their property it would cost between 8-10k as they have a severe problem and a massive garden. Im trying to explain that A) This is wrong They could be subject to legal action C) They are effectively defrauding people.

How is it that I am the one in the wrong? I am not one for causing problems/friction etc but there is just somethings I draw the line at and defrauding people out of tens of thousands of pounds is one of them. I have morals and integrity and its a shame others dont feel the same way however I really am annoyed at how others are so ignorant and self serving with the attitude of self interest over doing whats right....

jimpix12

I don't think you are in the wrong. I think that pursuing it might end up coming back to bite you, and that would be a shame. These people are clearly toxic.

ukjoel

It can be treated a lot cheaper depending on the scale.

The national trust have been dealing with this pretty effectively for years and there are other posts about this on here.

If left to its own devices its a monster but there are is a thread on the gardening section that shows with some persistence and adopting the method used by the NT it can be cleared cheaply and easily yourself.

sxcizme3010

Yes the thought had crossed my mind hence why I was asking for advice on here. Im torn as I dont want any hassle and I do want them to sell there house but doing it in this way just infuriates me. As I said in an earlier post - I got caught out when buying my house and trust me 9months pregnant with no heating or hot water due to a broken boiler, no oven or washing machine due to the oven being broken and connection for the washing machine leaking was not a nice situation to be in. I was crying my eyes out when we first went inside as it was dirty and as I said had problems.. Hormonal maybe but I wouldnt like to put anybody in that situation again.

Davesnave

DaftyDuck wrote: »

I know I asked it before, but I am seriously interested...

Where do you draw the line between a problem you'd highlight to agent/prospective owner, and one where you wouldn't feel such obligation.

Only where there is a specific question on the SPIF which has been lied-about, and as that is still only a stated intention in this case, I'd just tell the owner and agent very firmly the reasons to think carefully.

Although I've given a possible way to put pressure on the agent, I'm not sure I'd use that myself. In a similar situation involving local authority welfare services, I wrote the letter, but never posted it. I'd made them aware verbally, so trying to make them 'more aware' via intimidation wasn't morally justifiable.

It's simply not possible to assume responsibility for another person's moral behaviour, so in my view the OP has to tread warily here.

moneyistooshorttomention

sxcizme3010 wrote: »

Yes the thought had crossed my mind hence why I was asking for advice on here. Im torn as I dont want any hassle and I do want them to sell there house but doing it in this way just infuriates me. As I said in an earlier post - I got caught out when buying my house and trust me 9months pregnant with no heating or hot water due to a broken boiler, no oven or washing machine due to the oven being broken and connection for the washing machine leaking was not a nice situation to be in. I was crying my eyes out when we first went inside as it was dirty and as I said had problems.. Hormonal maybe but I wouldnt like to put anybody in that situation again.

It's called empathy - and you clearly have it and don't want anyone else as upset as you were (in fact - a LOT more upset than you were - as JK is harder to deal with). Its a good quality to have.

I think there are times when we are "our brothers keeper".

Annie1960

DaftyDuck wrote: »

Question is, where do you draw the line? If you know a house has woodworm, subsidence, a neighbour dispute, bindweed, knotweed, a mole in the garden, is on a faultline, and likely to fall into the sea? Dry rot? Wet rot? Cement rot?

I agree with much of what you say, but JK is different from the other matters you mention as it can be hidden from a surveyor. The others can't.

Annie1960

sxcizme3010 wrote: »

I think it comes down to the fact mortgage lenders wont lend or dont like lending on properties with JK. Most people can live with the plant and not encounter any problems but mortgage lenders just dont like it as its an evasive plant.

I think you are out of date here.

JK seems to be a fairly common problem, and my understanding is that lenders just want to see that a management plan is in place. The fact there is JK will not necessarily stop them from lending.

Annie1960

DaftyDuck wrote: »

I know I asked it before, but I am seriously interested...

Where do you draw the line between a problem you'd highlight to agent/prospective owner, and one where you wouldn't feel such obligation.

In this case, the OP knows that the vendor is taking steps to deliberately hide the problem so it won't be discovered by the surveyor. It is more difficult to do this with other problems such as subsidence.

Annie1960

sxcizme3010 wrote: »

Im trying to explain that A) This is wrong They could be subject to legal action C) They are effectively defrauding people.

If you make these points to your friend, then there is no more you can do. You have to let them make their own decision, and as others have said, there is a question on the PIF which the vendors will have to answer, and they can be held responsible for this in the future when the problem comes to light.

The fact they have already had a quotation for clearing it is evidence that they know about it.