Tree Overhanging Our Property - Mid House Sale

Swasterix

3card said:

I can see people saying that the branches are not that big but i would say that 30cms-40cms is pretty big and don't think it a DIY job at that size. These sizes are as big as most trunks on trees
Saying that i agree that its the OP's problem and he needs to arrange for them to be cut

Well it’s not something that I would like to DIY, no. But then round my way a tree surgeon would likely charge no more than £500 to tackle said job. If the OP had done a little more research before buying, they would easily have found out is their responsibility. 

Their current tactic of bothering the EA is likely only to result in annoying the vendor/future owner. Then there is absolutely no chance they will help them out. 

AdrianC

3card said:

I can see people saying that the branches are not that big but i would say that 30cms-40cms is pretty big and don't think it a DIY job at that size.

Nobody's saying it's DIY - but more because of the height. 30-40cm really isn't MAHOOSIVE.
My chainsaw's just got a little 14" bar on it. It'd be straight through that - not that I would, unless it was already at ground level...

These sizes are as big as most trunks on trees

Umm, nope, not really.
Perhaps if you're only used to tiddly little urban saplingy things...

Think the biggest trunk we've got on any of our trees is the redwood half-way down the drive. It must be more than a metre across. And we've not got anything REALLY massive. Quite a few that are two to three times the diameter of this branch, though.

I've got an elbow section off a branch taken off an ash a few years ago, which I keep meaning to carve into a sort of garden armchair - probably 60cm wide, maybe a metre and a half long - but it's so heavy, I can't move the bloody thing... That was roped down.

eddddy

AdrianC said:

. If these are substantial branches, the timber itself will almost certainly have value. What tree is it?

FWIW, going a bit off topic, tree surgeons often tell me that the cost of labour to remove the wood from the site is greater than the value of the wood.  They offer me cheaper quotes if they don't have to take the wood.

e.g. For a recent job, they'd only need 2 people to fell a tree, but they'd need a third to help load the wood onto their truck.

And when they did the job, they spent much longer taking away the timber, than they did felling the tree.

But I guess that varies, based on accessibility of the site, the type of wood, and the local market for wood.

Davesnave

eddddy said:

AdrianC said:

. If these are substantial branches, the timber itself will almost certainly have value. What tree is it?

FWIW, going a bit off topic, tree surgeons often tell me that the cost of labour to remove the wood from the site is greater than the value of the wood.  They offer me cheaper quotes if they don't have to take the wood.

Indeed. The neighbouring management committee managed to get 7 good sized trees felled  for £1k provided the rounds were then dumped off the Transit tipper in my yard instead of having to go off site. The woodchip was treated similarly.

That was in November. As I suspected, faced with rounds up to half a metre across, few people have come forward to collect 'their' wood and I'm half way through turning the rest into fuel for 2023. The excess woodchip will go on Gumtree.....or I'll have a very large barbecue when lockdown is over!

xylophone

Why did we buy? The issue of overhanging branches is not such as serious issue as to put us off buying the house.

Then it's no issue now either?

What you saw was what you got?  Live with your free choice and stop harassing your neighbour?

MovingForwards

I had two guys come out and cut down two trees for £340 last year. They stood taller than the three storey building, had to be careful of several stone walls and could only get themselves, the chainsaws and ropes down to where the trees were. They were take down in sections and done in a morning, that included carrying the trunks and branches down to the industrial shredder.

If you're that worried about them on your side, get quotes, you are already souring the relationship with the new neighbours, if the EA has passed on your message.

With EAs say exchange is imminent, they don't know and always say it, regardless of the stage conveyancing is at.

gingercordial

It's about to cost me £200 to fully remove a small tree (second storey window height) including stump grinding to below ground level, which I understand is the expensive bit, and that's in London.

AdrianC

Davesnave said:

eddddy said:

AdrianC said:

. If these are substantial branches, the timber itself will almost certainly have value. What tree is it?

FWIW, going a bit off topic, tree surgeons often tell me that the cost of labour to remove the wood from the site is greater than the value of the wood.  They offer me cheaper quotes if they don't have to take the wood.

Indeed. The neighbouring management committee managed to get 7 good sized trees felled  for £1k provided the rounds were then dumped off the Transit tipper in my yard instead of having to go off site. The woodchip was treated similarly.

That was in November. As I suspected, faced with rounds up to half a metre across, few people have come forward to collect 'their' wood and I'm half way through turning the rest into fuel for 2023. The excess woodchip will go on Gumtree.....or I'll have a very large barbecue when lockdown is over!

We had about a dozen pineyspruceyweeds (maybe 30-45cm diam trunks, 20-30m tall - standing lollipops that had been chasing the light, because they'd been packed in FAR too tight) removed last spring. Chipped on site, using a massive tractor-mounted chipper that got through a trunk in a couple of minutes, with the chip totally filling a big farm bulk trailer behind a Unimog...

Cost to us? Nothing. The value of the chip (which went for biomass) offset the cost of the work.

Oh, and that lot took two blokes a day...

phoebe1989seb

AdrianC said:

Davesnave said:

eddddy said:

AdrianC said:

. If these are substantial branches, the timber itself will almost certainly have value. What tree is it?

FWIW, going a bit off topic, tree surgeons often tell me that the cost of labour to remove the wood from the site is greater than the value of the wood.  They offer me cheaper quotes if they don't have to take the wood.

Indeed. The neighbouring management committee managed to get 7 good sized trees felled  for £1k provided the rounds were then dumped off the Transit tipper in my yard instead of having to go off site. The woodchip was treated similarly.

That was in November. As I suspected, faced with rounds up to half a metre across, few people have come forward to collect 'their' wood and I'm half way through turning the rest into fuel for 2023. The excess woodchip will go on Gumtree.....or I'll have a very large barbecue when lockdown is over!

We had about a dozen pineyspruceyweeds (maybe 30-45cm diam trunks, 20-30m tall - standing lollipops that had been chasing the light, because they'd been packed in FAR too tight) removed last spring. Chipped on site, using a massive tractor-mounted chipper that got through a trunk in a couple of minutes, with the chip totally filling a big farm bulk trailer behind a Unimog...

Cost to us? Nothing. The value of the chip (which went for biomass) offset the cost of the work.

Oh, and that lot took two blokes a day...

This ^

We have a 60'+ beech tree that is leaning considerably and have been told by a friend that there's a local tree surgeon who will remove/prune trees taking half the felled timber as payment which he then chops into logs for sale. We would use the rest in our wood burning stoves.

A tree surgeon we've used previously charges £240 per day (Carmarthenshire)......

Skiddaw1

Soot2006 said:

South East, I had an almost 30ft monster sycamore removed from the bottom of my garden. No access other than a small narrow side gate. The tree overhung my neighbour's glass greenhouse.  £400 to a local recommended tree surgeon and the whole thing was gone and removed. I cannot imagine your branches are that costly to remove - these tree people absolutely know what they're doing and are used to working in tricky access situation with damageable objects down below.

I have other trees that I like and I do ask my neighbour if my tree surgeon can access their side for maintenance, which I pay for, but that's entirely up to me and I do it for the health of my trees, not for the good of my neighbour. In fact, same neighbour does NOT maintain her trees which overhang my way, so I have that done at the same time as my own. Over time, you can develop a canopy to your liking as you keep them to a desirable shape from your side (provided no TPO which complicates things a little though not insurmountable) but you cannot expect your neighbour to pay for it! Such entitlement ....

We had a very similar syamore in our old garden (also South). We didn't have it removed but it did have a proper haircut every few years and we paid between £350- £600 to a (lovely and very reliable) local tree surgeon depending on how much needed doing.

OP, I honestly don't think it'll cost you anywhere near what you're fearing to get the overhanging branches trimmed.