Bathroom comes with the house??!!

[greencygnets]

So DH and I have just bought a new house (not brand new but new to us :)) and it cost us a lot of money (far more than a care to admit! :))
We moved in yesterday, the house is perfect except for one thing...

They've taken the bloody bathroom with them!!!!

One of the two main bathrooms upstairs is literally empty, like I don't mean just the furniture which you obviously take with you. But they've taken the bath, sink and shower!!!!

The room is tiled but theres random pipes sticking out of walls where these things should be!! The only thing left is the toilet. I honestly don't know what to do... We were going to redo the bathroom anyway at some point but never told this to anybody and weren't planning to do so until at least November/December time but now we don't have a choice!!

The kids come home from the holiday with my in-laws on Tuesday and we've got no bathroom for them!!!!

AIBU to think that the bathroom comes with the house, or is it totally reasonable to take the bathroom with you to your new house??!!

You are the litigation lawyer, right?

I don’t understand how they could dictate when you moved in- once you completed, the house was yours. They can move out when they like beforehand, but if the sale was completed at (say) 1pm Friday, the house was yours from then onwards.

I'm baffled by this too.

We completed 4pm ish on Friday, but were told by our solicitor (who is very good, have friends gone through him etc.) that they weren't able to get out of the house straight away because of previous mentioned other county moving in times etc. we didn't ask too many questions at the time but now possibly should have done!!!

We knew that the house was ours but we just thought we were doing a good turn by letting them stay until later on the Friday (I think they left about 6/7pm) we planned on going over as soon as we completed or as soon as they had left on Friday but didn't want to impose on them and had things to finish at our rented place (Saturday was the last day of our monthly contract and to stay until the Sunday just to finish packing up would have cost us another months rent!) so went in sat morning and found the bathroom issue! :)

Looking on the bright side, we get a new bathroom out of it, a bit of a laugh, some sweet baby in the kitchen sink baths. and at least they didn't take the kitchen or the other bathrooms too!!! :)

That's a brilliant way to look at it. I'm really pleased you're able to be so sanguine. You'll be able to top any other CF vendor story anyone tells you for the rest of your life!

Oh dear, how rubbish of them.

On the right side, you’ll be fine with ‘just’ one bathroom and a shower not a bath. You can turn the base of the shower into a shallow bath which is perfect for little uns. No issue. Running up and down stays may be annoying but will keep you fit!

And of course, you’ll get a gorgeous second bathroom later.

You know you were really lucky, don’t you? You essentially had tenants in for 24 hours and that probably completely invalidated your mortgage / house insurance for that period.

We've just moved house, well we have completed and the house is mine, but we have moved from overseas and I am waiting for my furniture to arrive. As soon as we completed the house was mine and the vendors had gone, they couldn't dictate to be when I actually MOVE in, that's ridiculous.

Years back when me and DH bought our first house, we completed and the vendors had taken every light bulb, every plug from the bath and sinks, several internal doors and the garden gate. Fuckers.

Your solicitor sounds very odd. Sorry. I agree you were way too trusting. We bought a property at one point where the estate agent recommended a local solicitor to us. Just happened to be representing the sellers too. we didn't use them. Is there any chance of some sort of conflict of interest here? I cannot imagine being given this sort of advice by a reputable one.

We completed 4pm ish on Friday, but were told by our solicitor (who is very good, have friends gone through him etc.) that they weren't able to get out of the house straight away because of previous mentioned other county moving in times etc

Your solicitor wasn't that good then. Vacant possession means just that.

Anyway hear the lawyer out on Monday but I guess what I am saying is consider getting separate advice if they don't seem on it.

They should have left the minute youcompleted as it was no longer their house. Your solicitor should have enforced this and warned you of the consequences of you allowing them to stay longer.

I am absolutely gobsmacked! We've had people tear out light fittings and attempt to dismantle a stair case. But a whole bathroom!!

They will have to pay to replace them ASAP. I just hope you don't have to go the small claims court route. Not that you'd lose, but getting money out of them may take some time.

Why would moving in times be affected by being in another county?

Hang on...big alarm bell ringing here....

You said that they insisted that they move out on a Friday, you move in on a Saturday?

Did your solicitor comment on this plan at all? Because if you completed on Friday, they have to move out that day and you own it (and can therefore move in) the very same day. You might choose not to move in until Saturday, but that's your decision and nothing to do with your vendors

Are you in the UK? Or are the vendors from Europe?

I mention this because it is the normal thing there to take your bathroom/kitchen with you when you move. So you do move into a property with pipes hanging off the walls etc. And possibly no sink or boiler.

I've never heard of "county moving in times", and I've moved inter-county a few times now....

When it comes to negotiating compensation I'd refuse to have the old fittings back on the basis that removal has probably damaged them. Make them cough up for your dream bathroom, OP

This with bells on.

I know it's normal to take the kitchen with you in some countries but I think the bathroom stays.

People are amazing! You would think the time and effort involved in removing bathroom fittings would make you think fifty times before taking them. I can only assume that they are heirloom pieces inherited from great granny's will with a clause saying they must remain in the family or disaster will strike and the firstborn child will be stricken with plague and boils.

"they weren't able to get out of the house straight away because of previous mentioned other county moving in times"

What on earth does that mean?

I'm also really puzzled as to why your 'very good' solicitor would advise you to let them stay once you'd completed.

The reason everything is so knife edged when completion takes place for most people who are selling one house and buying another at the same is because they have to move out and move into the relevant houses on the same day.

You don't get a period of grace, once completion takes place you're out.

Our vendor wanted to charge us ridiculous amounts for curtains, so we said no thanks. They were big and heavy and we assumed he would leave them for us to get rid of. No. He removed one from each window.

How strange!! Keep us updated, we are all here if you need help picking a new bathroom :D

Are we actually all talking at cross-purposes and the OP is not in fact in the UK? Because different counties in the UK don't have different moving-in times! The law is the same in every county of England & Wales!

If you're in the UK, there is no such thing as county moving in times!! We've moved inter-county 4 times, so we should know.

This IS the norm in other countries though e.g. Canada. But even there, the completion date/time is simultaneous. Everyone moves on the same day. Nightmare.

Under UK law, bathrooms stay where they are. I can't help wondering what they plan to do with it though?