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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

To think previous owners of our new house were being unreasonable?

261 replies

TheGrumpyAccountant · 08/08/2025 21:11

Today was moving day. Having sold our house, we packed up and cleaned yesterday so that we could do a final clean/take last minute stuff today. All of our belongings were out and being stored as of yesterday afternoon. We handed in keys at 10.30am this morning and our funds were transferred to the solicitor of our sellers before 11am. At 1.15pm we were told that we could collect the keys to our new house from their solicitors. When we arrived at the new house the previous occupants were just ‘chilling’ in the house (despite having meant to have handed all keys to their solicitors). Standing with my toddler and newborn, when I (very politely) spoke to them they said that they had not yet been told they could collect their keys for their new house and so refused to leave until they knew they had somewhere to go as if something went wrong they’d have nowhere to go. I pointed out that if they don’t leave WE would have nowhere to go. After some quick calls to lawyers they were told they had to leave, so they eventually did.

We are in Scotland in case that makes any difference to legalities etc.

AIBU to this that they were unreasonable in this situation? They’ve really taken the shine off of moving day for me since it all got quite tense and stressy. We are also in the new house over 2 hours later than we could have been.

OP posts:
Didimum · 08/08/2025 21:15

Bit of a mountain out of a molehill, OP. Everything ended up fine.

FWIW, I wouldn’t leave my house until I got the completion call from my solicitor either.

Original poster
TheGrumpyAccountant · 08/08/2025 21:17

Didimum · 08/08/2025 21:15

Bit of a mountain out of a molehill, OP. Everything ended up fine.

FWIW, I wouldn’t leave my house until I got the completion call from my solicitor either.

Edited

in the end it was their solicitor that told them they had to leave

OP posts:
Cadenza12 · 08/08/2025 21:17

A relative moved only to find that the sellers had to be woken by the Agents at 10.30 am and told to get a move on. They had barely packed and relative ended up moving in while they were still faffing about. That's stress.

Whyx · 08/08/2025 21:18

Shocked that anyone would think this was ok. Pure cheeky fuckery!

(I think) The house was legally yours. Their onward chain had nothing to do with you at that point!

Didimum · 08/08/2025 21:18

TheGrumpyAccountant · 08/08/2025 21:17

in the end it was their solicitor that told them they had to leave

Show quote history

They clearly hadn’t been told that before you arrived though.

Blimeyblighty · 08/08/2025 21:18

Cadenza12 · 08/08/2025 21:17

A relative moved only to find that the sellers had to be woken by the Agents at 10.30 am and told to get a move on. They had barely packed and relative ended up moving in while they were still faffing about. That's stress.

when we moved in our sellers hadn’t even finished packing!! In the end our movers put their crap in the garage and they spent the next few days going backwards & forwards with a van taking it away…

W0tnow · 08/08/2025 21:19

Didimum · 08/08/2025 21:15

Bit of a mountain out of a molehill, OP. Everything ended up fine.

FWIW, I wouldn’t leave my house until I got the completion call from my solicitor either.

Edited

But it wouldn’t be your house, would it?

Didimum · 08/08/2025 21:19

Whyx · 08/08/2025 21:18

Shocked that anyone would think this was ok. Pure cheeky fuckery!

(I think) The house was legally yours. Their onward chain had nothing to do with you at that point!

In a chain, it’s meant to move from top down. The solicitors are supposed to communicate with each other from top down.

fthisfthatfeverything · 08/08/2025 21:20

If u paid for it, it was your house they were in …

Didimum · 08/08/2025 21:20

W0tnow · 08/08/2025 21:19

But it wouldn’t be your house, would it?

Show quote history

Until you’ve had your completion call, you don’t know you’ve completed. As above, it is supposed to move from top of chain down for this very reason. Solicitors’ error.

PlacidPenelope · 08/08/2025 21:21

FWIW, I wouldn’t leave my house until I got the completion call from my solicitor either.

It is no longer your house Didimum once the buyers have paid for it, it is their house. If you have nowhere to go because your payment for the house you are purchasing has not gone through then that is your tough luck you no longer own the property you have sold and have no business being in there.

Original poster
TheGrumpyAccountant · 08/08/2025 21:21

Whyx · 08/08/2025 21:18

Shocked that anyone would think this was ok. Pure cheeky fuckery!

(I think) The house was legally yours. Their onward chain had nothing to do with you at that point!

Yes legally ours. They were quite aggressive and rude about it too as if I was being unreasonable to want to move in!

OP posts:
Givenupshopping · 08/08/2025 21:22

Sorry OP, but you need to have a bit of patience and understanding on moving day, all too often funds get held up in the banking system, so while your solicitor may have been advised that your funds have been received in the 'Sellers' account, it may take a couple of hours for their money to then get to their 'Sellers', putting you in just the description you described, someone ending up without a roof over their head for the night. However, the money does go through eventually, but sometimes not until later in the day, so if you're the top of the chain, it may feel like you're going to be left homeless, but this doesn't happen. Hence if everyone shows a little patience and understanding, then everything usually goes much more smoothly. Remember that for next time.

Clarabell77 · 08/08/2025 21:26

I blame the solicitors. Every single time I’ve moved house they have been really poor communicators and really don’t seem to
get how stressful the whole thing is.

Original poster
TheGrumpyAccountant · 08/08/2025 21:27

All missives had been signed and THEY HAD HANDED IN THEIR KEYS! Their solicitor had acknowledged receipt of funds and told us to collect the keys. I’d have understood if they had said there was a hold up somewhere and we couldn’t get the keys.

OP posts:
Givenupshopping · 08/08/2025 21:27

Didimum · 08/08/2025 21:19

In a chain, it’s meant to move from top down. The solicitors are supposed to communicate with each other from top down.

Show quote history

This is incorrect 'Didimum', on moving day, the bottom of the chain pay their funds to the next person up the chain, and so it goes on throughout the day, if you had to wait for the top of the chain to complete, it would be unlikely that ANYONE would get moved in on 'moving' day. The top of the chain has to wait until sufficient funds from the various deposits and mortgages, is big enough to pay them, before they will move out, so it just wouldn't work the way you've described.

JMSA · 08/08/2025 21:29

It’s not ideal but just one of those things.
Hope you enjoy your new home.

Zezet · 08/08/2025 21:30

Mildly annoying but way dramatic.

"Taking the shine of"? Because in a highly bureaucratic process another party had information and sources different to yours and left as soon as the information was confirmed on their side by their source? For a duration of one film movie?

Lifebeganat50 · 08/08/2025 21:30

TheGrumpyAccountant · 08/08/2025 21:27

All missives had been signed and THEY HAD HANDED IN THEIR KEYS! Their solicitor had acknowledged receipt of funds and told us to collect the keys. I’d have understood if they had said there was a hold up somewhere and we couldn’t get the keys.

Exactly-you wouldn’t have been given the keys if the funds hadn’t cleared! Ultimate CF

SomeOfTheTrouble · 08/08/2025 21:31

Didimum · 08/08/2025 21:15

Bit of a mountain out of a molehill, OP. Everything ended up fine.

FWIW, I wouldn’t leave my house until I got the completion call from my solicitor either.

Edited

The house no longer belonged to them. You can’t just hang out in a house you don’t own!

dogcatkitten · 08/08/2025 21:32

We arrived at our new house at the designated time, keys were meant to be handed over there. No one was there, the house was locked up and obviously still full of furniture. It was a weekend and our solicitor wasn't answering the phone. Eventually (hours later) our sellers turned up and started moving out their stuff, left a load for 'tomorrow' (if you don't mind, we did mind but what can you do?), which they picked up eventually. It was so stressful and such an anti-climax when you are so looking forward to getting your house.

Jojimoji · 08/08/2025 21:32

At this point the house belonged to OP.

They were CFs to still be there!!!
You can't stay in a house that legally belongs to someone else because you feel like it

Original poster
TheGrumpyAccountant · 08/08/2025 21:37

dogcatkitten · 08/08/2025 21:32

We arrived at our new house at the designated time, keys were meant to be handed over there. No one was there, the house was locked up and obviously still full of furniture. It was a weekend and our solicitor wasn't answering the phone. Eventually (hours later) our sellers turned up and started moving out their stuff, left a load for 'tomorrow' (if you don't mind, we did mind but what can you do?), which they picked up eventually. It was so stressful and such an anti-climax when you are so looking forward to getting your house.

What is wrong with people, why can’t they just follow ‘the rules’!?

OP posts:
AliceMaforethought · 08/08/2025 21:40

I'm astonished at these replies. These people were total CFs and in the wrong.

TheSilentSister · 08/08/2025 21:42

Ah, 2 hours OP, that's nothing in the grand scheme of things.
I didn't even know if we were definitely moving until the morning of the move, now that was stressful! It only takes one buyer/agents/solicitor in a chain to be a bit slack and it affects everyone.
I turned up at my new house and owners were still there. Owner had been on the verge of a nervous breakdown, so had a lot of relatives helping her move out. The house I moved out of, we had to go back over the week-end and collect items stored in the garage. We were all doing DIY moving as couldn't book any movers without a solid move date.
It was a nightmare at the time but all forgotten now.
Enjoy your new home.

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