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AIBU?

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New neighbours

667 replies

Plannergirl9 · 10/06/2020 12:12

Sorry this is a long one. TLDR: Essentially we were gifted land from ex-neighbour when they died. New neighbours who bought her house has told us we must sell it to them.

A bit more backstorey. Our elderly neighbour lived next to us until they died in late December. She had a side bit of garden like an allotment that we used to help her with (hatched area on diagram). Unbeknownst to us she gifted us that area of land in her will. The rest of the house and land was to be sold and the money given to charity.

After the will reading we have had the land registry changed to confirm we now own the land. The house was put up for sale late January. In mid February we received a letter from a solicitor asking that we sell the land to the potential buyer of the house. We emailed back saying no we won't sell. We then heard nothing more from any solicitors. House was then sold during lockdown.

The new neighbours moved in on Monday. Yesterday they came to our door asking for the name of our solicitor so the land purchase can take place. We told them we were not planning on selling the land and that we told their solicitor that. The new neighbours didn't take it well. Apparently they only bought the house on the provision that they could buy the land and this was agreed with us via their solicitors.

The new neighbours got quite loud and angry about us apparently misleading them and left to speak to their solicitor. They seem to think we legally need to sell them the land as there was a written (email) contract between them and their solicitor who confirmed to them by email prior to the sale of the house that we would sell the land.

Aibu to a) not sell the land even though we technically didn't buy it and b) that the fact their solicitor has mislead them is not our problem?

Neighbours land is in red.
Our land is in black and the hatched area is the land they expect to buy.

New neighbours
OP posts:
SoupDragon · 10/06/2020 15:25

That solicitor's email is ridiculous!

Who did you communicate with when you said no to the initial request?

In the interest of avoiding any doubt, I would forward it to the neighbours even though you aren't obliged to do anything. You do have to live with them after this.

Distiller91 · 10/06/2020 15:27

What in the cheeky fuckery is that email 🤣

ThisShitCrazy · 10/06/2020 15:28

OP can we be your fake solicitors to reply? From the law firm of Net&Mater

GertrudeCB · 10/06/2020 15:28

They sound deluded.

NietzschePeachPearPlum · 10/06/2020 15:31

Was there a street address on the “solicitor’s” email (ours had reams of contact details at the bottom)?

If so check on google maps for a street view, see if it looks like a solicitors office. And/or, indeed, if the address actually exists!

iloverock · 10/06/2020 15:34

Solicitors do not write like that to each other let alone to laypeople.

Windyatthebeach · 10/06/2020 15:36

DON'T YOU DARE SELL OP!!
invested folks here can pen an email to send back to them I am sure...
Your lovely neighbour gifted you that patch.
Don't be disrespectful!!

pictish · 10/06/2020 15:38

Umm...wtf?

They’ve either written that themselves or they’ve been taken for a ride.
What absolute nonsense.

Upstartcrones · 10/06/2020 15:38

If they raise the subject again say you have concerns about the legitimacy of the solicitor and are contacting the Police. Then watch them run for the hills Grin

mooching · 10/06/2020 15:40

We bought land with our house off the neighbours. We absolutely would not exchange until we had agreement with neighbours, it was all quite stressful at the time but it happened and is now fine. It wasn't even as if the house had an occupier to put pressure on to buy (like ours).

They are utter CF.

HildaSnibbs · 10/06/2020 15:43

I'm intrigued, I want to know who wrote that email! No solicitor would write like that. I think NDN has made it up...

I'd be forwarding it to the solicitor you corresponded with previously with a few pertinent questions...!

MiniCooperLover · 10/06/2020 15:43

They are ridiculous OP, just batshit !! What size is this incredibly valuable piece of land anyway? And how lovely of your old neighbour to leave it to you, very sweet of her.

1forsorrow · 10/06/2020 15:44

People are weird, they clearly think that land "should" go with the house. We were selling a house and it had a garage in a block. We kept the garage (DH is a hoarder) split the deeds and put the house up for sale. Lady viewed it, loved it, offered the asking price. All great. Neighbour gets chatting to her and tells her the house has a garage, lady asks agent who says it doesn't, neighbour says yes it does so agent phones me, I say no it would be going for £20k more if it had a garage. Lady decides we are not being fair as the garage should go with the house and backs out of the sale.

I didn't kill the neighbour but I was tempted.

AcrossthePond55 · 10/06/2020 15:45

Thinking about it, if you haven't already given/sent them copies of your refusal correspondence with the 'original' solicitor I wouldn't send a thing until I'd tracked down the 'provenance' of the original email requesting you sell. Contact the solicitor on the emails/letters sent to you and ask them if they did indeed send the nonsense-latin emails to the buyers re agreeing to sell.

Emails are notoriously easy to fake. Get yourself an account in a fake business name and send an official looking email to yourself. No letterhead, nothing 'official'. It may be that your new NDN got scammed. But it also may be that they're trying to scam you. I'd want to know which it was.

mcmooberry · 10/06/2020 15:46

Yes I'd also like to know how big the land is, it doesn't look very big from the diagram. That email is hilarious!

Longwhiskers14 · 10/06/2020 15:48

Oh my god, the CFs have invented a solicitor! They blew it with the Latin though, as no solicitor writes like that for conveyancing. What I don't understand, though, is that you said you had an email from their solicitor that you replied to saying you wouldn't sell - is that not the same solicitor? Either way, I wouldn't worry, they haven't got a crus to stand on. (Yes, I Googled that.)

mencken · 10/06/2020 15:48

if it hasn't been mentioned already: nihil illegtimi carborundrum

what a nonsense. I'm sorry that you have to live next to these fools!

SoupDragon · 10/06/2020 15:48

What would the point of making up an email be though? It won't get the neighbours the land because the OP would clearly know they never agreed to sell.

DampSquid · 10/06/2020 15:49

Good luck with your new neighbours, they sound bonkers and troublesome. They'll be complaining to the council about your outbuilding next

ProudMarys · 10/06/2020 15:51

Sounds like the solicitors mislead them on saying you would sell it or they misunderstood. Either way it's your land now not theirs.

YippeeKayakOtherBuckets · 10/06/2020 15:51

Stupid people expect that other people are as stupid as they are.

So they think you’ll fall for the Latin.

This is all very funny. And as you’re not actually in any danger of losing the land you can quite legitimately laugh at them about it.

Guiltypleasures001 · 10/06/2020 15:55

I sense another contender for classics

YippeeKayakOtherBuckets · 10/06/2020 15:56

Oh I think this one has legs.

Eddielzzard · 10/06/2020 15:58

Low marks for trying. At least you found out early what they're like...

TonytheDog · 10/06/2020 15:58

Slightly off track but .... where's the similar thread from earlier in the week where the OP bought a house that she thought included a plot of land but the neighbours had started using/claiming it as theirs. I can't find it and I'm beginning to wonder if I dreamt it.