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Original poster

Would anyone else find this a bit disturbing?

117 replies

pollyglot · 05/09/2021 00:25

We bought a house about 4 months ago from a 70-something couple who had built it. We never met them nor had anything to do with them, but did see them once driving out of the gate, so recognised them. We're down a long drive with trees, and from time to time we see them standing at the gate just staring. I have waved but they just scuttle off. On other occasions, they sit in their car on the road at the gate and look. I have no idea where they live, though I gather they are in a retirement home. I'm imagining that they are annoyed that the garden isn't as tidy as it was when they were here! I'm starting to feel a bit...paranoid!

OP posts:
PhilCornwall1 · 05/09/2021 09:52

@UserNameNameNameUser

Awww. You could invite them in for a cuppa. Have a chat. Give them some closure if they need it.
And they'd then be potentially rocking up all the time for a cup of tea.

Sod that.

GotToGoBye · 05/09/2021 09:58

I have driven past (and slowed down to look at) my last house, about 6 times in past 11 months.
I live there 6 years, longest time in one place except my parents house aged 10-18years.
I am curious about inside, I’m not critiquing their changes, it just hold memories.
I will stop but probably will go and look again, I’d be embarrassed if the owners saw and waved at me.

Scarby9 · 05/09/2021 10:01

A friend of a friend has recently sold her far too large family home which was lived in by her grandparents, then her parents, and which she had lived in all her life. She is now 64 with no health problems - just made the sensible decision that she didn't need a 5 bedroom house and over an acre of land as a single person.

She is appparently livid, devastated and heartbroken in equal measure that the new owners have taken out all the trees and bushes in the front garden and paved it for parking. Says she feels her whole family has been 'betrayed'.

I have suggested a) she stops driving past daily, and b) she looks back at the photos of the house when her grandparents first acquired it (which I have seen). The gardens were all laid to lawn then. Her family, three generations of keen gardeners, transformed it into their vision of loveliness. But the point is: they owned it; they changed it. New owners now own it; they have an equal right to change it to suit their way of living. None of us can expect to impose our views of a lifestyle on someone else, or expect someone to live in a static museum set to preserve our legacy.

lottiegarbanzo · 05/09/2021 10:01

Yeah you're right Theworldishard they're probably zombies.

Back in mundanity, their behaviour is really very normal.

Fairlyurgentdecision · 05/09/2021 10:10

Bit weird especially if they don't wave back. I certainly wouldn't be inviting them in.....

lottiegarbanzo · 05/09/2021 10:14

Of course they don't wave back. They're embarrassed to have been spotted.

ThanksIGotItInMorrisons · 05/09/2021 10:17

Think they’re probably still grieving the loss of their home. I can’t see this as harmful.

ThePotatoCroquette · 05/09/2021 10:17

Maybe he's realised that the whole house has been built wrong and is probably not structurally sound at all and so they are driving past to see whether it's fallen down or not.

Buried treasure in the garden, or a dead body they don't want to be dug up.

CBroads · 05/09/2021 10:34

We had a similar thing with our house, we're 25 and bought their house this year, they're in their late 70's. We've completely ripped the house apart and opened it all up, had a patio put in, all of the plants etc ripped out and the garden relandscaped, looks great and it's added about 30k to the value already! However, the couple kept trying to come around to the house as if it was still theirs, they hate what we've done, making it all open plan etc. We actually had to have them arrested as they were basically stalking us. People need to let go of the past.

TwooThirty · 05/09/2021 10:40

I'm imagining that they are annoyed that the garden isn't as tidy as it was when they were here!
The person we bought ours from does a slow tutting walk past our front garden. She looks at it sadly and shakes her head to herself.

We had to have foundation work done and it’s a state. I’m saving up to pretty it up but just can’t afford it right now and her coming on a weekly judgemental walk makes me feel so stressed and ashamed! I could do without it.

Moonface123 · 05/09/2021 10:43

Maybe they are homesick ,.missing the house, it happens.

Leah2005 · 05/09/2021 10:45

More strange now you say they didn't live in it. We moved into a much loved family home and my DH had a dream in the first week - a little girl at the end of the bed saying "where have they all gone........?" He promises it was a dream but I'm not convinced Grin

Pinkywoo · 05/09/2021 10:58

You say they owned the land for many years before building the house? Maybe there's dead relatives buried in your garden they're visiting, don't dig too deep when you're tidying the garden! Grin

UserNameNameNameUser · 05/09/2021 12:46

If it’s only 3 years old and they built it as an investment, maybe they are thinking of building another one.

If they owned the land, is there adjacent land? Maybe they still own that and are just scoping out the build potential.

wtfisgoingon2021 · 05/09/2021 13:05

Sad as it may be for them.

You paid money for a home for you.
Id want them to politely fuck off.
I enjoy privacy at my home.

Sommernacht89 · 05/09/2021 14:10

I cant believe,the many unempathetic women on this site.what a fucking me me me society you have created.it is an old couple,looking at their once family home.of course there is sadness,as the realisation that nothing lasts forever can be hard to bear.what are you paranoid about?you watch to many shite movies.enjoy your home with your family,like the old couple once did.

Sommernacht89 · 05/09/2021 14:14

The only one disturbing is you and the many repliers who have no empathy for an old couple,who had to sell their once family home because of old age.

lottiegarbanzo · 05/09/2021 14:15

Yes, people should wear blinkers (if they must go out), take no interest in anything and talk to no-one. Especially 'old' people.

manchestermom5 · 05/09/2021 14:24

This is incredibly sad. They built that house, all the precious memories were in that house. I think they are missing the house.

Pemba · 05/09/2021 14:30

FGS RTFT properly! It is not their former family home full of memories. It was built three years ago as an investment!

icedcoffees · 05/09/2021 14:30

@manchestermom5

This is incredibly sad. They built that house, all the precious memories were in that house. I think they are missing the house.
They only built it three years ago!
WhatsTheBFD · 05/09/2021 14:34

Creepy AF and I’d be telling them so next time I spotted them, even more so considering it’s a new build.

You paid for it.
It’s your home now.

They have fuck all right to be showing up and staring at it.

Tangledtresses · 05/09/2021 14:53

Maybe they buried something in the garden and are worried your going to dig it up 😂

FireworkParrot · 05/09/2021 15:01

I do think it's odd behaviour if they're being that blatant. Like a PP, I do sometimes go past my old house and have a quick look as I go by but would never stand staring at it or park outside it because I'd be conscious of making the new owner uncomfortable. I think if they do it again I'd try to go out and catch them and ask if they needed anything.

MissisBee · 05/09/2021 15:34

We bought our house from an elderly couple who clearly didn't want to leave. Despite the sale being delayed by weeks and despite the fact they'd already bought their new house, they made no preparations at all to move. We turned up on moving day to find the house full of all their stuff that the removers had just emptied out of the furniture. We spent the day helping them take it all into the neighbour's house until their family could bring it to theirs. They just left all the stuff that was in the garage, including a commode. The woman kept turning up for weeks after looking for things they thought they'd left behind (first was their TV remote, fair enough). Then it was a bush from the garden. The last was some fitting for her washing line. We were all round the garage and shed looking for it with her, couldn't find it and she got all stroppy and accused us of being "unChristian" for not giving it back to her.