find some leaves on the ground.. and take a pic of those with a scale.. if you can ...

reminds me a bit of redbud or poplar with those heart shaped leaves ... but they are too small in these pix to tell for sure ...

whether or not something might fall down.. really depends on whether it will fall on anything ... of value or importance .. this tree looks like it pretty far from anything important.. so why would there be any imperative to have it removed.. btw.. i dont recommend chopping it.. unless you just want some backbreaking aerobic exercise .. lol ... and i presume the car isnt parked there all the time ....

in theory.. any tree might fall down.. but we dont really go bare earth to avoid such.. its all about the odds ... and starting with an ID was spot on ....

anyway... in tree time.. counted in decades.. ya.. it might fall down.. i dont see any reason why it need be done inside a few weeks or months ...

ken

ps: perhaps your realtor ought to stick to selling houses.. i dont see any indication from the lawn.. that the tree is aggressive with stealing water .. if it were.. grass wouldnt grow there.. and i note.. there are plants growing under it.. right at the trunk... that doesnt happen with water hog trees ....

and btw.. if you decide to have it removed.. thats a bargaining point for a low offer.. if the market will bare such ... on reread.. i see you already bought the house.. congrats ..

pps: whats a neighborhood gardener.. and why does he or she have a hate on for this tree ... probably his car parked under it... lol ... or he wants you to hire him to remove it????

Looks like a Cleveland Pear to me....

eta or Callery Pear.

Thanks for the reply, Ken! Updated my post with some close up pics of the fallen leaves.

You couldn't tell from the original pictures, but the tree is actually relative close to the house itself (last picture added), so there's the added risk if it topples over.

By "neighborhood gardener" - I meant the guy who mows the lawns, maintains landscape for other neighbors on the street.

I really don't want to remove the tree (love all trees, especially mature ones). Wondering if I have branches removed / thinned out, that would help reduce the weight of the top, thus preventing anything toppling over.

Any tips appreciated!

neither i suggested.. and flora is rarely wrong ... and the pears are near invasive in some areas ... and stink to high heaven when in bloom ...

i also not the historical mulch volcano mound around the trunk.. and thats not good

and it IS leaning toward the house ... though i doubt it would do much harm ... but who wants to find out if im wrong.. right??? ...

if it is a pear.. be done with it.. dont waste money on topping it.. NEVER TOP A TREE .. imo ... and thinning is just thinning up for doing it every few years or so ... throwing good money after a bad investment ...

trees are renewable.. just be done with it.. if you want the stump ground out.. make sure there are no utilities there ....

and research and plant a suitable replacement .... further from the house.. if you can ... and dont go large on a replacement.. smaller trees are cheaper.. transplant easier .. and get established faster.. and usually outgrow very expensive larger trees inside 3 to 5 years ... because there is less stresses involved in the planting ...

ken

I would guess it a pear, probably a Bradford, or a Cleveland pear. by the growth pattern of the tree, I would lean toward a Cleveland. (I have two Clevelands and most of the yards around here have at least one Bradford.)

Some people find the smell offensive. It is not sweet like a sweet gum, or some other flowering trees, but I do not find it offensive.

Based on my experience the tree will not blow over. If it takes wind damage, the sections of the tree will split off. Several of the trees in our neighborhood have taken wind damage. The owner have cleaned them up and in a couple of years, you can hardly see the damaged area.

All things considered, I would keep the tree. If it takes un- repairable wind damage I would then consider replacing it. Meantime I would enjoy the clouds of white flowers that will be in your yard in the spring and the pretty bronze colored leaves in the fall.

"... by the growth pattern of the tree, I would lean toward a Cleveland"

Cleveland has an upright growth habit (taller than wide) that IME is retained as the tree matures. The tree pictured is definitely broader than one would expect for a Cleveland. I'd guess that it's a Bradford, although there are other cultivars (not as common as Bradford) that also grow wide like that.

I agree it is probably a Bradford. The Bradford looks like a fat lollipop, and Cleveland is more narrower. Thinking faster that my finger.

I just this morning learned another advantage of the Cleveland Pear tree. Our two trees are covered in pears now. Usually a Blue Jay stakes a claim and defend the trees. However this morning we heard a clucking sound coming from the tree and realized it was a Pleated Woodpecker. He was n the trees eating pears all morning. I have seen him several times in the yard the last couple weeks but did not realize the attraction was the pear trees.

If you do not know what a Pleated Woodpecker is, he is one of that larger birds, and the largest of the woodpecker. I had left a dead pine tree in the back part of the lot, to attract the woodpeckers. (mine and the other houses in the neighborhood have vinyl on all exterior surfaces, though I have never known one to cause significant damage)

https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Pileated_Woodpecker/overview

That should read pileated rather than pleated :-) 'Pileated' refers to the crest on top of the bird's head.

I can't imagine a pleated woodpecker would be a very happy one!