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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

To bin everything the seller has left behind.

97 replies

Teaandcakeat8 · 18/03/2016 22:11

Just picked up the key to my new flat today.

The seller is currently on holiday, exchange/completion happened today and it was all very rushed so he likely didn't know we would be completing before he went away. He gave consent to exchange/complete yesterday.

Just got inside and it's empty as in no furniture but there are piles of crap around eg cupboards not completely empty, utensils in drawers, loo roll and soap in bathroom etc.

To me it looks like they might have been planning on coming back to clear. They've obviously taken their 'belongings' and just left whatever they didn't need iyswim.

I have to go in on Tuesday to pick up the other key (seller still has one) and I am planning on taking all his post with me as there is no forwarding address.

WWYD? Presumably it all belongs to me now so I'm within my rights to bin it all? Or would you box it up and take to the estate agent?

OP posts:
SoupDragon · 19/03/2016 07:44

I would box it and give him a deadline before Freecycling it. It could be that someone else was meant to clear it whilst he was away but didn't.

topcat2014 · 19/03/2016 07:46

The locksmiths must be happy with this thread - never occurs to me to change locks. I suppose I must be rich now, what with the money saved over the years.

AveEldon · 19/03/2016 07:55

Agree with the others who say change the lock
We always do - it's an easy DIY job to change the barrel

alreadytaken · 19/03/2016 08:01

you can charge him the cost of clearing it for anything he has left behind. I wouldnt do that personally but I would try and contact them through solicitor or estate agent to say they have 24 hours to remove and then take anything saleable to a charity shop while binning the rest.

Binning items that could be reused is wrong, whoever they belong to.

LuciaInFurs · 19/03/2016 08:06

We have just had this. The seller had three months between exchange and completion. We turned up and they had taken the skirting boards from two rooms but left their washing machine plumbed in, remnants of their dinner on baking trays, clothes, packets of laminate flooring, tools in the garage and a suprise in the upstairs toilet. They also didn't leave all the keys. When we emailed them about the crap (literally) that they had left, they emailed back saying they were disgusted that we emailed them.

It really ruined the excitement of the new home. Especially when they later broke into the garage to take their tools back.

It's taken us so long to put the house back together we haven't even moved in yet. I'm binning all their crap.

FeliciaJollygoodfellow · 19/03/2016 08:10

If he hasn't been living there since November I'd bin it.

SoupDragon · 19/03/2016 08:10

The locksmiths must be happy with this thread - never occurs to me to change locks. I suppose I must be rich now, what with the money saved over the years.

Not really, changing locks is easy and inexpensive to do yourself.

Original poster
Teaandcakeat8 · 19/03/2016 08:11

I'm a first time buyer but the thought hadn't occurred to me that I should change the locks - I'm not sure my parents have ever done it either!

Luckily I'm not currently living there as I have a crossover between the end of my rental notice period and the completion of the sale. Otherwise it would really have taken the shine off...

Also to posters saying they would take everything to the charity shop. Would you really? Even old wall art/a flimsy folding table/mirrors etc?

OP posts:
DreamFever · 19/03/2016 08:13

Yes, change the locks ASAP. He could have given keys out to neighbours and relatives and exes and not got all of them back for all you know . You could do it yourself if you don't want to pay a locksmith.

About the stuff - I'd box it all up. Then call the estate agents and tell them previous owner has till [deadline] to collect before you bin it, post kept till [deadline] then returned to sender.

herethereandeverywhere · 19/03/2016 08:20

We boxed up the stuff (including a wedding photo album!) and deposited it at the estate agents.

Definitely change the locks, you don't know who has a copy of that key.

DontKillMyVibe · 19/03/2016 08:23

It sounds like it's all crap that he couldn't be bothered packing - I'd bin.

squicketysquack · 19/03/2016 08:26

I've been the seller in this scenario...it was a house I rented out that had been "empty" for a while, 150 miles away from where I live. The process was really long and drawn out for some reason I can't remember and exchange and completion then came v quickly at a time I couldn't get down to the property to clear it out. There was quite a bit of stuff there like you describe, mainly kitchen stuff but also some small bits of furniture. The buyer did know in advance though as they were hurrying the completion so I warned them it wouldn't be totally empty, but I had no expectation they would keep any of it for me, so as far as I know they kept anything they fancied and the rest was binned.

Original poster
Teaandcakeat8 · 19/03/2016 08:31

Yes sounds very similar... The property isn't the sellers main residence. The process has been very long and in the end I ended up paying for a duplicate of information that was needed to exchange. The seller was on holiday whilst all the happened (although obviously corresponding by email) so it's likely he didn't have a chance to revisit the flat. However as its not his main residence and there's nothing sentimental I'm not sure whether to just bin it.

OP posts:
Slothlikesundays · 19/03/2016 08:34

If I were you I would bag it all up and insist he takes his belongings with him on Monday when he drops off the key. "I'll just give you a few bits you left behind"...

ijustwannadance · 19/03/2016 08:45

Please don't take old crap to a charity shop. It costs them a fortune to get rid of other peoples crap.
Only take stuff that is fit for re sale.

LurkonTAthread · 19/03/2016 08:51

I always change locks when I move. Partly because 20 years ago, a friend moved into a rented flat and was burgled a week later without forced entry, so his insurance wouldn't pay out.

choccyp1g · 19/03/2016 08:58

Is it possible that someone else has been living there? Squatters?

londonrach · 19/03/2016 09:01

You really dont need a locksmith to change locks... I remember my grandad doing it at my parents house. Didnt take him long as by the time i got the cup of tea out to him the lock was changed.

Flowers1974 · 19/03/2016 09:07

Hi, legally you can't bin it, unless it is all rubbish. You need to change the locks today and speak to your solicitor for advice on Monday. Unfortunately your EA won't be able to help as it is a legal matter, unless he can contact the vendor to get permission to chuck everything. That permission needs to be in writing though. I would box it up if you can and put it to the side and do what you can until Monday. Don't let it spoil your first new home though. Enjoy xxx

MrsJayy · 19/03/2016 09:12

Our house was full of stuff when we viewed it even though they had moved out said to solicitor mske sure they empty it before completion was still full of stuff we just binned it we did keep some photos for a few weeks but eventually binned ithem

JolseBaby · 19/03/2016 09:12

If it's a uPVC front door then you need to measure the barrel so that you can buy a new lock which will fit. YouTube how to change a lock and honestly you'll wonder why you'd ever thought about calling a locksmith. You'll need a screwdriver and it will only take a few minutes.

MummaV · 19/03/2016 09:15

I'd chuck the lot. I did when I moved in here. They'd left a LOT behind. Anything worth anything went to charity shop or on eBay and the rest filled 2 large bins and 5 bags.
Seller evidently wasn't bothered as I've since contacted her about receiving letters from the school/doctors/opticians about her children (could tell from envelopes, never opened) and she saw the message and never responded. Over a year later she still hasn't changed her address with any of these people!

We also changed the locks, well swapped the front and back door barrels as the back garden isn't accessible from anywhere but the house and definitely only had one key, so 10 minutes of swapping the barrels and job done.

SuperFlyHigh · 19/03/2016 09:23

You could ring estate agent and ask what to do.

Normally the property is meant to be clear when selling/buying a property.

twofingerstoGideon · 19/03/2016 09:31

I would therefore bag it up, including EVERTTHING from the used soap to the dust I swept from the floor and drop it off at the estate agents this morning, then change the locks and move on.
Are people really this nasty in real life?

For me the salient point in the OP is: The seller is currently on holiday, exchange/completion happened today and it was all very rushed so he likely didn't know we would be completing before he went away.

Why not wait until he's back and then give him a couple of days before getting rid of it?

LatriceRoyale · 19/03/2016 09:39

I'd definitely change locks. When I bought my first flat I came home a few days later to find the previous owner in my kitchen picking up some items he'd forgotten. Got locks changed immediately and my lawyer made him cover the cost.