Mortgage Tree Reports

A mortgage tree report answers a question somebody else has asked. If nobody has asked, you probably need a different survey. Two questions settle it:

• Has a lender, building surveyor or valuer asked for a tree report in writing, as part of a purchase or remortgage? Then this is the service, and the quickest route is to send us their exact wording.
• Do you already own or manage the property, and is the real worry whether a tree near the house could fall, drop a branch or damage something? Then a tree risk assessment is what you need. It looks at the tree, what it could hit and how likely that is, and tells you what, if anything, should be done. That is the question most owners are actually asking, and a lender-format report would not answer it.

If nobody has asked for a report and the concern is the tree's health rather than safety, a tree condition survey is the better fit. If the trees affect a planning application, you need a BS 5837 tree survey. Still unsure? Describe the situation on the quote form and we will tell you which applies rather than sell you the wrong one.

Lenders and building surveyors ask for a tree report for mortgage purposes when mature trees stand close to a property they are being asked to lend against. Their concerns are usually trees within falling distance of the building, the possibility of root-related subsidence on shrinkable soils, and how the trees might grow over the term of the mortgage.

A tree survey for a mortgage addresses those exact points. The relevant trees are recorded and assessed, the report responds directly to the wording of the lender's request, and it is presented in a format underwriters recognise. Our article on how a tree survey can improve your mortgage report explains the process from the buyer's side.

The site visit covers the trees within influencing distance of the building, including trees on neighbouring land where they can be assessed from the property or from public ground. Each relevant tree is identified by species and recorded for size, condition and structural defects, and the relationship between the trees, the building and the soil is considered where root-related movement is part of the lender's concern. Photographs are taken throughout.

You receive a written report that answers the lender's or surveyor's request point by point: what trees are present, their condition, whether they present a risk to the building, and any management recommendations where they are needed. Where the honest answer is that the trees need nothing, the report says so. It is written to be read by an underwriter as well as by you.

Included: the site visit, the assessment of the relevant trees and the written report with photographs. Separate: a detailed tree risk assessment of a specific tree if the report recommends one, which can usually be carried out without a second visit, and any tree work itself, which we do not carry out. Structural or geotechnical investigation of the building or the ground is engineering work, not arboriculture, and sits outside any tree report.

Four things let us quote accurately and book the visit straight away: the lender's or surveyor's wording (a photograph of the letter is fine), the property address with its postcode or Eircode, your exchange or completion date, and a photograph of the trees if you have one. If the trees stand on neighbouring land, say so, because access affects what can be assessed. The service is the same on both sides of the border, and the report answers whichever lender or surveyor has raised the request.

Send your lender's request and you will have a price and a visit date, usually within one working day.

The fee depends on the number and size of the trees involved, whether neighbouring trees need assessing and access can be arranged, the distance from our base in County Antrim, and whether the request calls for anything beyond a standard report. Your quotation states what is covered before any work starts.

Mortgage timescales are tight, and a missing report should never be the reason a completion date slips. Our streamlined service delivers a comprehensive, lender-compliant report within 48 to 72 hours of the site visit. To keep things moving, request a quote with the property address and your lender's letter, and a visit will be arranged as quickly as possible.