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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

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Original poster

Selling house, just had a random woman at our door?

53 replies

LoobyLou1976 · 28/10/2019 12:33

Hi, posting for advice.
We are selling our house, there is the usual for sale sign in the garden as well as a large skip full of stuff we are getting rid of.
Was just sitting in the living room and spotted a random middle aged woman walking about my front garden. I opened the front door and she claimed that her son has booked a viewing with my estate agent and that he sent her over to 'check out' the garden because he has some dogs and they wanted to see if it was big enough? She then said that they wanted to see the house and that they were available to view it ? I said I cannot accept any viewings that are not booked through the estate agent and that they would have to confirm with me, she wasn't very happy and wandered off!
Is it just me or is it incredibly rude just to invite yourself to wander about someone's garden even if the house IS up for sale? I phoned the estate agent who have zero knowledge of this woman. Bit freaked out now.
Wondered if maybe I caught her eyeing up the skip contents and she made up a cover story?

OP posts:

wowfudge · 28/10/2019 12:34

I think that's it and she was after a rummage through the skip.

dreichsky · 28/10/2019 12:36

In my experience people who want things out of your skip simply knock and ask if they can take them.
An impulse drop in for house viewings isn't usual but probably isn't that surprising either.
Either way I wouldn't worry about it.

Winterdaysarehere · 28/10/2019 12:36

Or burglars!!

OakleyStreetisnotinChelsea · 28/10/2019 12:38

We had people knock and ask about the house when we sold, I didn't think it that unusual.

InfiniteSheldon · 28/10/2019 12:43

Happened to me and we sold to them

53rdWay · 28/10/2019 12:46

We had a couple turn up to look round once who hadn’t contacted the estate agent, just dropped by. And then they got really annoyed when we said no, because “don’t you WANT to sell?” (We were tenants so no we didn’t really.) I think some people genuinely see the “For Sale” sign and assume it’s now public access.

Purpleartichoke · 28/10/2019 12:48

It happens.

If you are in a hot market, sometimes they even knock with no for sale sign.

Majorcollywobble · 28/10/2019 12:53

YANBU
She was rude and obviously a liar with a weak cover story which didn’t check out with the agent .If she was skip dipping that wouldn’t have been half so cheeky .
She could have been casing the joint .

Majorcollywobble · 28/10/2019 12:55

There have been some burglaries in this area where children have been put through windows to gain access .

DappledThings · 28/10/2019 12:55

I don't think it's that weird. You are advertising yourselves as for sale so she might have just been hoping to pop in if she was passing rather than bothering o call the agent. A bit lazy maybe but not suspicious.

verticality · 28/10/2019 12:56

I think it is rude, but personally I'd have been polite for the sake of potentially selling the house.

Ginkythefangedhellpigofdoom · 28/10/2019 12:59

Well she is obviously lying because in one sentence she is saying son has booked a viewing and in the next they were available to view now.

Which one is it?

She's obviously just being nosey and you caught her.

hallohallohallo · 28/10/2019 13:05

We had this when our house was up for sale. Twice random people knocked at the door asking/expecting to come in to see the house. When told they would have to book through the agent they both became very angry and confrontational.
As a result, I decided to remove the sign from the front of my house to stop this happening again. House was still listed online and through agent's website. A few weeks later, a man turns up at my door and says he's here to show a couple around my home. I can clearly see the couple sitting in his car which is parked on my drive.

I asked who he was, said I wasn't aware of an appointment that day and started to close my door when he very reluctantly told me that he was with a rival estate agent and his client had seen my house online, they'd worked out where my house was located from the right move location on the map online and then drove up the street looking for a house that matched the online photo. He said if they did a viewing and liked my house then I could sell it through his agency.

I closed the door. In shock, I phoned my agent to explain what happened and he told me that it was actually very normal (for that area at least) and he wasn't at all suprised and thanked me for not taking the rival up on his offer!

timshelthechoice · 28/10/2019 13:08

YANBU

Winteriscomingfast · 28/10/2019 13:13

Fab, I have sold 2 houses that way. One turned up during family party with 100 guests.They were welcomed in, viewed the house, had a drink. met the neighbours and made an offer on the spot.

Prior to the internet this was why you had a sign outside the house!

nononever · 28/10/2019 13:15

One time when we were selling a house my neighbours noticed a stranger walking around our property and peering in the windows, we were at work. She challenged him and he said he was interested in the house so she told him she'd noted his registration just in case he was casing the joint! Anyway, he did put an offer in without actually viewing it.

NotTonightHalloween · 28/10/2019 13:16

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

Winteriscomingfast · 28/10/2019 13:19

If you are in a hot market, sometimes they even knock with no for sale sign

2 letters this saturday- 1 through the door and 1 by post. My garden seemingly looks great on google earth!

Redglitter · 28/10/2019 13:22

My pal had her house up for sale and we came back from the shops to find a couple wandering about the back garden. Theyd seen the For Sale sign and decided to chance their arm. They asked to see round. The house was like a bomb site with all the early morning getting everyone out to school rush. They put an offer in later that day

nononever · 28/10/2019 13:23

Remembered another one and another house. There were a couple up for sale in our cul de sac and I saw a couple going into one which was directly across the road. I jumped to the conclusion they might be buyers and hastily did a makeshift for sale sign and stuck in in the window because we were building a house and due to put ours up for sale within weeks.

Sure enough they were viewers, they phoned and asked if they could view 'now'. I was up to my eyes cooking, the house was a riot, my husband was at work and I was running around after a toddler but agreed. They made a verbal offer on the spot and an official one through their lawyer the next day. Quickest sale we ever made.

reasonablesettlement · 28/10/2019 13:24

My house isn't for sale and we have people knocking to ask if we are considering selling and could they view the property!

There are loads of CFs out there and I have previously been warned that people see a For Sale sign as an open invitation. Many often see a skip in the same light. You have both!

Drabarni · 28/10/2019 13:28

It's not weird.
We have people knocking to see if we want to sell our garage as parking is terrible near us.
I wouldn't mind but it's about 2 mins away from the house down a different street, they'd have to knock at one of the doors to find out who it belonged to.

MsPepperPotts · 28/10/2019 13:28

I sold my last house this way.
Woman knocked at the door and I was happy to show her and her husband around.

They had been driving round the neighbourhood after viewing another property and saw the for sale sign.
They made the decision to buy as soon as they entered the living room but I insisted they see the rest of the house.
They were cash buyers
She phoned her solicitor from my landline and the sale was completed in 28days.

MissConductUS · 28/10/2019 13:28

Here agents will require the exclusive right to sell the property for some negotiable period of time just to avoid that possibility.

ThatssomebadhatHarry · 28/10/2019 13:30

When our house was up for sale a completely bonkers (another story but among other things can you deduct £25000 of the price as I quite fancy an extension) viewer decided to invite his wife’s family around for a viewing the day after he saw it. Didn’t bother going through the agent turned up and while I was enjoying some tv in my slacks saw him looking at me through the window. I think the “for sale” sign removes some right to privacy in many peoples minds and your home becomes fair game.

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