Preparation of Mortgage Home Buyers Reports

You will need to hold a recognised further or higher education qualification in Arboriculture or equivalent.

This course will enable you to gain further understanding of the relationship between trees and buildings and whether there is a risk of subsidence.

You will be given the information to be able to:

• Assess the potential for trees to cause subsidence damage
• Identify the species of tree most commonly associated with subsidence damage
• Assess the shrink/swell potential of the soil underside of building foundations and produce a preliminary report for the home buyer/vendor client and /or the mortgage lender

Course sessions:

• The fundamentals of tree-caused subsidence
• Soils, clay and climate
• Field exercises
• Writing the report

A Lantra Awards certificate will be issued on successful completion of the assessment.

You must:

• Be over 18 years of age
• Have a minimum of 5 years post-qualification/work experience in the arboricultural industry
• Be familiar with the process of visual tree assessment (VTA)

On completing this session, you will be:

• Aware of the impact of subsidence on the house insurance market
• Be aware of the rooting patterns of different tree species

You will be able to describe:

• The Meteorological Office Rainfall And Evapotranspiration Calculating System (MORECS)
• How trees cause subsidence damage to buildings
• The potential influencing distance of trees
• How implicated trees can be managed to minimise their potential to cause subsidence in the future

It is recommended that you ensure that you remain up to date with changes in industry and working practices by attending regular training.