Garden state at the point of completion

GDB2222

Dustyevsky said:

If one buys a doer-upper, a garden in that sort of state surely comes with territory.

It is up to the purchasers to inspect prior to exchange, so how long ago was that?

If the property is unoccupied, it is expected that the garden will be a bit wild. We bought an unoccupied house and it was just part of the process to clear the garden. We certainly didn’t complain. 

Jonboy_1984

It should broadly match the situation at exchange unless anything else has been agreed on the fixed elements (such as a specific shrub being dug out and taken).

If they are not happy at point of exchange offer a token discount of say £200(your estimated cost plus time to organise), so they can organise a gardener to tidy up to suit themselves.


That being said with ours the grass was 3’ tall a couple of weeks before exchange and they then strimmed it down last minute. As the easiest route to move in was via the back garden it made the move a lot easier…

Dustyevsky

GDB2222 said:

Dustyevsky said:

If one buys a doer-upper, a garden in that sort of state surely comes with territory.

It is up to the purchasers to inspect prior to exchange, so how long ago was that?

If the property is unoccupied, it is expected that the garden will be a bit wild. We bought an unoccupied house and it was just part of the process to clear the garden. We certainly didn’t complain. 

We bought a property that had its land mostly neglected for 3 years, but damage still occurred between exchange and completion. Panicked by not finding homes for a lot of stuff, the vendors built a huge pyre in the garden, and it was still smouldering when we arrived. That wasn't a big deal, but two mature trees were so badly affected by the conflagration, we had to cut them down.

As you say, less than pristine, neglected property comes with these problems more often than not, and the price paid is key to how 'understanding' the purchaser feels!

[Deleted User]

As a potential purchaser, I would expect the garden of a doer upper to be in a state, and  having grown since I viewed it also. As a gardener, I'd prefer it was left that way so I can take my time with it to see if anything was growing that I wanted to keep, rather than someone just cutting everything down regardless. 

kazzystar1973

Thank you for all your feedback - really appreciate it and it has made me look for both sides - so the property is going for £180,000 - it is worth £190,000 definitely as it has a lovely bit of land round it (which is the messy jungle). We had 2 x offers of full price but went with the lower offer as they weren’t in a chain and were so keen and they have been pushing the estate agents and solicitors all the way to be fair - it has been 3 months since we accepted the offer - I really don’t think £100 will cover the cost as if it was that little we would have down it in a heartbeat - we reckoned on a good chunk over £500 at least but we are going to get a few quotes from general gardeners in the area to see if we just are thinking it is more work than it is. 

kazzystar1973

Oh and just to clarify we are at the point of exchange in the next week - we have signed contracts and they are currently in the post to the solicitor  

dimbo61

The lovely wrap round garden maybe the area for the new extension 

Skiddaw1

[Deleted User] said:

As a potential purchaser, I would expect the garden of a doer upper to be in a state, and  having grown since I viewed it also. As a gardener, I'd prefer it was left that way so I can take my time with it to see if anything was growing that I wanted to keep, rather than someone just cutting everything down regardless. 

I'm with @[Deleted User]. I'd not lose any sleep over it. By all means get a few quotes but if no one is available prior to completion or the cost is too much I'd just let it go.

maisie_cat

We bought a probate property that had been unoccupied for nearly a year, each time we visited the garden was more unruly but to be expected. We visited on the day of exchange, by then the house was starting to smell a bit cold & damp and the gardens were chest high but given the circumstances and temporary nature it wasn't a problem.
We certainly would not have expected the family, who lived 250 miles away, to arrange for a gardener

badger09

kazzystar1973 said:

Oh and just to clarify we are at the point of exchange in the next week - we have signed contracts and they are currently in the post to the solicitor  

If you haven't exchanged yet but expect to complete shortly afterwards, then the garden/jungle will be pretty much in the same state on both dates. If the buyers do a pre exchange viewing and come back to you about the state of the garden, I would start with a 'sorry but its our late father's property, has been empty for a while and we live xxx miles away so haven't been able to do any gardening'. Its unlikely they'll pull out over the garden, but if you're getting quotes anyway, you could offer to pay half of the cheapest quote after completion.