Buyers could be duped into buying a home with Japanese knotweed - how to spot plant

Japanese Knotweed

According to a recent YouGov study with over 2,000 participants, nine percent of respondents said they would keep quiet about knotweed when selling a property that contains the plant and try to handle it on their own, even though doing so would probably result in legal action if it was found.

When answering the question about Japanese knotweed on the TA6 form, which is typically filled out as part of the conveyancing procedure, sellers are legally required to be truthful.

With knotweed affecting an estimated five percent of UK properties, and around one million residential transactions taking place in 2023, as many as 4,500 purchasers may be duped into purchasing a property without realising the invasive plant is there.

Once a transaction has been completed, the new homeowners have little choice but to either swallow the cost of removal or treatment themselves or pursue legal action against the seller.

Three percent of respondents said they had already discovered Japanese knotweed after buying a property.

It comes after a seller of a three-bedroom family property in Raynes Park, London, was ordered to pay £200,000 in costs and damages to the buyer after they neglected to disclose the presence of knotweed during the sale, illustrating the substantial hazards associated with not disclosing the presence of the plant.

The plant was situated behind the shed in the back of the rear garden and the seller claimed not to have known about it.

Nevertheless, the judge ruled that the seller was responsible for the loss of value and associated legal expenses as the knotweed had been there for a number of years and would have been evident in the summer.

The survey also revealed that, although 77 percent of respondents saying they knew what Japanese knotweed was, just 12 percent of them were able to accurately identify it from a gallery of six images featuring various plants, such as lilac and bindweed.

In order to account for seasonal variations, buyers and sellers who are unsure whether a plant could be knotweed are encouraged to conduct a professional survey or carefully search online for photos displaying the plant’s look at that particular time of year.

Nic Seal, the founder of Environet, said: “Discovering knotweed growing in the garden after you’ve bought a property is a very unpleasant and worrying situation to be in.

“If it can be proven that the plant was present at the time of sale, there is a very good chance of success in a legal case against the seller.

“Therefore, anyone who answers ‘No’ to the Japanese knotweed question on the TA6 form needs to be 100 percent certain that the property is not affected, which means no live rhizome under the ground of the property or abutting in the neighbouring land.

“That’s a difficult undertaking, so the general advice is to respond ‘Not known’.

“As the Raynes Park case shows, sellers who fail in their obligations to carry out proper checks and give false information are likely to come unstuck, as experts can usually tell how long the plant has been there and whether any attempts have been made to kill it.”

Declaring Japanese knotweed, can make a home more difficult to sell but it’s not impossible. Selecting the appropriate action, 68 percent of sellers would take the initiative and start receiving expert care, enabling their sale to go through.

Additionally, buyers are growing more realistic; with only 33 percent of respondents saying they would not purchase a home with knotweed. Half of them would never have purchased a home with knotweed five years ago.

Those who are uncertain whether a property is affected can commission a survey to check for any sign of knotweed, such as Environet’s JustCheck™ which comes with a five-year warranty.

While most lenders are happy to mortgage properties afflicted by Japanese knotweed, 33 percent of buyers would still walk away, not wanting to take on the cost.

In these situations, the number of purchasers who may buy a property is slashed by one-third, which is expected to have some negative impact on house prices in the current buyer’s market.

What does Japanese knotweed look like?

The appearance of Japanese knotweed differs depending on the season. At this time of year, the plant has red shoots. In the summer months, the plant has large, green leaves which are shaped like hearts.

In late summer, the plant will produce cream-coloured flowers. In autumn, the plant’s leaves will start to turn yellow.

The plant is very similar to bamboo and has purple speckles. Japanese knotweed can grow to be three metres in height with leaves that can grow to be 14cm.

You are more likely to see the plant growing near canals and rivers as well as near motorways and tramlines.