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

[TheGrumpyAccountant]

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.

That’s different to the OP’s scenario though, because the seller had already handed over the keys, which doesn’t happen until the solicitor has informed them that they’ve received the funds and the sale has completed. The seller in this case was refusing to leave because they hadn’t had confirmation that their onward purchase had completed, which is absolutely nothing to do with the OP.

Similar happened to us, we were relocating. Got the call that funds had transferred and keys available. We got the keys and headed to the house to find them still packing and loading the van. Their excuse was that they didn't think we'd move in that day with travelling so far, they had handed a set of keys to the agent but fully intended to move out at their leisure during the course of the day!

It seems they followed the process and somehow you have had an answer before but your solicitors failed to check the next ones have completed too?!

I understand the stress.

people are stressful lol

Whether the next ones have completed is irrelevant to the OP.

Some absolute fools on here who see little wrong with the vendors‘ behaviour. Mindblowing. I can only assume they have little experience of buying and selling houses.

When I sold, the prerequisite for the keys getting handed over was the funds arriving with my solicitor. I only actually saw the funds in my own account a few hours after they were in the house already, and it could apparently have taken till the next day.

Ok.
so them being in the house still is irrelevant too.

when you buy a house and your own status of buying is dépendant of your status of sale. I would challenge to say it IS quite relevant. For both parties. It goes up so it was just a matter of time but should a problem in a chain occurs…everyone gets back to their house until sorted.

Not in Scotland
Chains mean nothing

Similar happened to us. The lady we were buying from was buying a new build. We arrived at our new house (all completed and keys exchanged) and she was sat inside waiting for the construction company to call her to collect her keys. We tried to explain to her that we had a removal van outside waiting to unpack and she was now sat in our house, but she was really rude and just kept saying that she couldn’t leave until she had her keys. We were kind at first and tried to help, but eventually explained this wasn’t our problem and in the end she had to be told to leave by our solicitor. She then sat outside our house for ages! This went on for hours and caused us all sorts of issues as we also had a new fridge freezer etc arriving the same day. People are weird!

Not true. I very recently moved. Everything was held up because my buyer was waiting for their buyers funds to come through.

No, once your buyer's funds have cleared in your account you clear out of the house because you no longer own it. You then wait for your funds to clear in your seller's account. But you do it from OUTSIDE of the house you're selling because it's not yours anymore!

I think you were lucky with a 2 hour delay - my move to my previous house was terrible. I was all packed up and removal men all loaded but no money came through from my buyer at 1. Phoned her but she said ‘don’t worry’. Got to 3 and no word from the buyers solicitor and my removal men said I’d have to decide if they unload or I go into storage as time was running out. Went into storage, son booked me into a hotel with nothing - had to buy toiletries etc. my buyer couldn’t understand why I wouldn’t hand over the keys. Finally completed the following day but removal men couldn’t do that day as they were booked so got my stuff in 2 days later. Extra cost was £1000 which my buyer refused to cover - small claims sorted that out - it was terribly stressful. I moved again in March and both my buyer and the man I was buying were absolutely fabulous - my buyer was happy for bits to be left in the garage (I didn’t need to) and the man I bought from let me move all my plant pots into the new garden the week before completion. My post redirection has been a joke and the new owner of my previous house is happy to meet up for lunch and hand over post. The man I bought from popped around the day after I moved to explain how everything works and has been happy to answer any questions I have since - a pure moving joy!!

When we moved here, we were told that everything completed at 1pm. The agent didn’t have the keys. They rang and got no reply. We went to the house 1:30 and could see them sitting in the lounge. They wouldn’t open the door. Solicitors involved, estate agents got hold of them. They dropped the keys to agent at 3pm (we had gone back to rented house which we thankfully had for another 3 days).

We picked up the keys at 4pm, with a van full of the first load of stuff we were Moving in, expecting house to be empty but they were having a takeaway! They said they were moving slowly as they were told we still had our rental house for a couple days.

Their own solicitor ended up reading them the riot act ans told them they were breaking the law and to get out now. They were finally out at 10pm, leaving half their stuff on the neighbours drive as their solicitor told them not to leave anything on the property or we could dispose of it, and the house was left in a complete state. Never seen anything like it.

I posted about it on here at the time and loads of people told me I was being unreadable as I still had a rented house for a few days! They didn’t own the bloody house anymore, I did!

Bur it would no longer be your house once funds have been transferred from the buyer buying your house. Technically you would be trespassing on the property.

No once the money come though for the house being sold it no longer belongs to the prior owner and prior owner really shouldn't be there.

Though most people are okay or understanding as long as they seem to be getting moving - or nearly out the door ie shit happens and they aren't piss taking.

My Mum stuggled to understand this - she bought an empty new build and has never moved. She thought it was bad planning a school mum was going to be driving round/parked up with loaded up house for several hours - kids in school - and explaining house being sold needs to be empty when sale goes though and they have to wait for the buy of their next place to go through and in that time there's nowhere to be - Dmum couldn't grasp it.

IL esate agent neighbur said it's not uncommon - she said worst she has was a sale going though that day 3 bed house and her seller was oh DH will rent a van after work and pack up - she was like no you have to be out by midday or contract say you'll get fined- and it will take hours way longer than you think to pack a house. Woman had to ring her bloke at work get him home and drag in every one they knew and they were still really late - and in end the buyer movers were literally chucking their stuff in the street - estate agent said they were in tears on phone with her and she was well yea it's not your house now.

We ended up de-copuping last sale/buying - not our first choice and it dragged on way longer than initally planned- so didn't have same lack of access and stuff coming - but came with other problems and costs and stress.

But in the chain the money moves from the bottom up. As soon as the seller has received your money they should be out.

You would have to leave, just like the people in the OP. The sale of their house had gone through and they were trespassing,

Yes, I went into moving day excited to get in but I fully expected it to be hard work and stressful. Which it was. That didn't stop it being a special day.

That happened to our ex next-door neighbours. The guy hadn't moved out, only half packed when they arrived to move in. They couldn't move in properly until next day, and his stuff was all over their lawn for a day.

OP, I am completely with you on this one. The house was legally YOURS and they were trespassing and very much out of order. Anyone saying the money exchange works from top to bottom is an absolute halfwit and Anyone saying you are silly for not having a backup plan is a complete idiot. The ones sitting in YOUR house are the ones who should have had a backup plan. And anyone saying you are making a mountain out of a molehill doesnt know what they are talking about. After taking the day off work and then finding you cant get into your house to start unpacking then yes it is a big deal that you may not get the beds assembled in time and essentials unpacked because the previous owners are too thick to understand the rules.

What do you mean by "chilling" in the house? Sat on the floor? Or feet up on the sofa, watching TV? Furniture all there and not moved?

Either way, they are dicks but I just really need that mental picture clarified 😆

I had similar. Completion at 11am. We got call from our solicitors that we could collect key from EA at 11.30am. We arrived at EA and no keys had been dropped off. We said we'd go for a quick lunch then back to collect keys at 12.30. Arrived back still no keys. Phoned our solicitors who rang sellers solicitors and told sellers new house was not completed on yet so they couldn't move out. They only had a small van and had to do 3 trips to empty their stuff. We had to sit outside house in boiling heat in car waiting for them to move out. No apologies at all from sellers. We finally got the keys at 6.30pm.

But the funds had been transferred for that house so the previous owners no longer owned it. OP owned that that point as she had paid. Their onward move is not OP’s problem it is their problem!

The absolute cheek of not dropping off keys for a house that doesn't belong to you any more and thinking that a stranger should just put you up in their home.

Exactly, they are asking, no - demanding without giving a choice - that a stranger accomodate them in their home.

Whether you have someone to go or not, you can't just sit in someone's living room without their invitation or consent. It's their house and you've no business being there.