Buying a house- fixtures and fittings

@TheSnootiestFox I think you are taking this thread a bit personally! I don't think anyone object's to you taking your curtain pole. It's more the petty sellers removing light bulbs that are wanky!
The only comparison to OP's seller removing custom made shelving that springs to my mind were the custom built cupboards we had made at our old property, they were beautiful and so bloody useful and I wouldn't have dreamed for a second of removing them.
We left curtains, all light fittings etc. Our buyer could literally move her stuff in and start living (it was also in beautiful decorative order and I cleaned like the tazmanian devil until the moment we left for the last time!). On the plus side, the owners of the property we moved into did exactly the same for us, which meant some of the stress of moving was alleviated as everything was clean and in working order.
I do think if a property is presented a certain way (Ie livable immediately) then we should have a moral (if not legal) obligation to leave it that way for the next owners, if you want to take your Laura Ashley light fitting with you then I am sure B&M will do one remarkably similar to the untrained eye, we just need a box on the fixtures and fittings form for 'replaced with B&M lookalike'.😆

Yabu. This is what these forms are for. We have just moved and had a bookshelf which was purpose made for the space but could be adjusted to another space and been in situ for ten years but like new and cost 1k. We never planned to leave it and our buyers didn't expect us to. Took husband half an hour to take it down and looks amazing in our next house. We did leave the sellers a bottle of cava and a congratulations on your new home, all the curtain poles but took the curtains and using them in next house. Again all mentioned on the form. You know what your sellers are taking and leaving. It's now up to you to negotiate with them....hope everything goes well for you. It's so stressful moving...can I suggest you get a box together of things you need for your first night eg pj's, pants, socks, toothbrush, tea bags etc. we made that mistake. Which of the 1000 boxes has clean pants and socks and where was the toothbrush...

OP, insist you view the house just before you exchange as this type of vendor is just the type to rip you off.

Email your solicitor first about this so you have a record of asking for this to be sorted out.

I thought if it is attached physically to the structure, it can't be removed and not replaced by like for like?.

Ten years ago my friend was advised to do a final look around once the vendors had left.
They were a bit pissy about it.
It was an expensive house.
Turns out they had cleared the house of all fixtures and fittings, ridiculously so, and dug up many plants in the garden.

They halted the transfer of funds.
Their solicitor knew the solicitor of the vendors and went after him and the EA very hard, and their solicitor duly gave them a total earful.

They were told to make good what they had done or the sale was off and they would be caught for costs.
Their solicitor was very pissed off with them.

Leaving holes in walls leaves you with a huge mess. Take it very seriously.
Create a paper trail.
Also contact the Estae agents to ask are they aware of the mess they are trying to leave.

My friends were furious and caused them maximum embarrassment.
They knew their new neighbours where they were moving to, and told them what they had done.
They also told their old neighbours about it.
Maximum embarrassment.

@Deebee90I hope he took that up with his solicitor/conveyancer!

OP, I worked in a solicitors doing conveyancing and I saw my fair share of people taking stuff that others would leave, sometimes questionable but they had paid for it at the end of the day. Most of the time it was as they wanted it for their new house and not to be awkward. You can ask if they would consider leaving it and they can either ask you to purchase them for a cost or just say no, they need them. It doesn’t hurt to ask but at the same time, they don’t have to leave them.

I bought a fiat and the seller attempted to remove a bathroom light but did so incompletely. I received an electric shock!!

Why an electrican?? Takes about 5min learn on YouTube

Mine took the oven (gross manky thing but still annoying using camping stove for 5m), half the carpet in the room?? Like u may as well have it all. All the light bulbs n found out months later all the batteries from the smoke alarms

There's nothing 'wanky' about taking some very expensive items that you already possess to another house. What a revolting phrase! As I said before, my curtain poles are antique. The one I'm taking from my sitting room came from my local church and my mum was given it by the then Church warden who knew she liked her antiques and mum then donated to the church. So a, it's beautiful, highly ornate and irreplaceable, b, has sentimental value as both my mum and the fabulous lady that gave it to her have died now, and c, my new windows are slightly smaller so it can be cut down. Why would I leave that for someone else who may not even like it? Light bulbs are in a different league admittedly but it's the people being left Smeg fridges etc that are unusual, not people like us who like the things we own and want to take them with us!

There's nothing 'wanky' about taking some very expensive items that you already possess to another house. What a revolting phrase! As I said before, my curtain poles are antique. The one I'm taking from my sitting room came from my local church and my mum was given it by the then Church warden who knew she liked her antiques and mum then donated to the church. So a, it's beautiful, highly ornate and irreplaceable, b, has sentimental value as both my mum and the fabulous lady that gave it to her have died now, and c, my new windows are slightly smaller so it can be cut down. Why would I leave that for someone else who may not even like it? Light bulbs are in a different league admittedly but it's the people being left Smeg fridges etc that are unusual, not people like us who like the things we own and want to take them with us!

The fuckers that sold my brother his house did this. They left him with cut wires from the ceilings everywhere as they’d taken not only the bulbs but the light fixtures too. They also moved the toilet from the wall so it leaked everywhere. Honestly if I met them now I’d punch them. Absolute crooks.

why would anyone take lightbulbs?

Some people really are that wanky.
Its not like their old curtain tracks are going to fit in their new place either unless it has the exact same measurements, which is highly unlikely.
My nan exchanged a social flat, her 3 bed house in the countryside for a 2 bed flat in a city. The outgoing tenants took everything, right down to the light bulbs. When she moved was a Sunday during December. All the shops were closed and she spent her first night in her new home sitting in the pitch black!

I had this once and I said they had to make good on any fitting removed ie fill in holes, paint walls, put up new flex wires etc. I just felt if they were really that attached, then best they take it. Strangely when it came to it, they didn't remove half of what they had stated. Apparently ran out of time.

Gosh people are strange aren’t they? Yes I’d definitely speak to your solicitor. Especially with regards to the functionality of the rooms. Also it will look a mess once they’ve removed it all.

Our lovely sellers left loads of things - a Smeg fridge, outdoor furniture, blinds and curtains. I do think you’ve been unlucky.

I was dismayed to find that the people who sold me my house had removed even the loo roll holders in the bathrooms. Also things like the handle to get in and out of the bath.

How much to 'make good'

How much do you want the house, how big is the chain, and how far into the proocessare you?

Why don’t you offer the vendor money for anything you want to keep? Lighting fixtures are rarely included, the legal requirement is a flex. Usually the fixtures & fittings report says what is going / staying and there is a price beside items the buyer may purchase from the vendor. Curtains and blinds are not considered a fixture or a fitting.

It depends though. For example, about 6 months before I decided to sell my house I had some made to measure blinds made for my kitchen in a quite distinctive Emma Bridgewater design. Why would I leave those when a, they were expensive, b, they are new and c, they are clearly to the taste of a middle aged EB collector and the person buying my house is a young single man in his late 20s? Even if I left them they wouldn't be to his taste so if I can't make them fit my new house then I'll sell them to someone who likes them! Perhaps they want to recreate what they have currently and can use the shelves and rails to do so in their new home?

If light fittings are being taken then they will have to replace them with a standard ceiling rose, flex and bulb. I would be asking that they use an electrician to do this via my solicitor.

Some people take curtain poles and curtains if they fit their new house and some don’t. There’s no hard and fast rule on this one.

Built in shelves/wardrobes are considered fixtures and should be left with the property. Speak to your solicitor for advice on the fixtures they plan to take.

The people we bought our house off took the blind from the living room with them. It matched the rest of the house and we were unable to find a company that could match the design of the blind so we have a different style blind in the front room from the rest of the house. They took all curtains and curtain poles which I didn’t mind but the blind pissed me off. They also took the insert from the cutlery drawer

When I moved in here, the seller left the light fittings but had taken all the light bulbs. We didn't realise until it started to get dark, turned the light on and nothing happened!

Luckily we found this out shortly before B&Q closed so I was able to dash over and buy a load of bulbs.

This.

I’d try and negotiate with them on the custom shelves and dressing room, they may only be taking them assuming you wouldn’t want them. I’ve always taken light fittings - mine are expensive, and I like them, and I also wouldn’t assume the ones like my Seletti monkey chandelier were to everyone’s taste - and would take curtain poles and curtains if they fitted my onward purchase. Wouldn’t expect sellers to leave theirs unless they were cheap. They’re decor rather than fixtures.