AIBU to think this intimidating house buying letter should be reported to police?

[Blopi]

Friend’s elderly neighbours came back from holiday to find a letter delivered by person. It has made them upset and frightened.

It was addressed to them personally Mr and Mrs (surname)
They said that their home is too big for the couple and would be suitable for a 5 bedroom HMO. Willing to pay £Xk for it (properties have been selling for 10-15% more) and will visit them on Thursday at 11am to discuss things. Signed by Mr (common surname). No phone number or email address.

Her neighbours have zero intention of moving home as they have lived there for 58 years. They are upset on how they are targeted and wondering how did they get their names?

In the past I had these letters which have been sent to others down the estate. Though not intimidating like this letter, nor personalised.

Unfortunately my friend is working on Thursday. She would have loved to have seen if the person turned up and told

Should my friend phone the police on the non emergency line about this? As maybe something else dodgy going on

While i agree that as things stand currently downsizing doesn't release much equity, Its not your or anybody's business to say what people should do with anything that they bought and own. Its not "wild" its my choice.

You're wrong.

feel free to read my previous posts

My partner is a sergeant and has said they definitely take elder abuse and coercion seriously and would take this seriously. Ignore posts like this OP.

This. I'll be sole occupant of a 4 bed house in September but two bed houses with a decent garden are like hen's teeth around here. I might as well stay where I am.

I would 101 report it because I think it would be intimadating. Your house is too big so im coming over to bully into selling it. Its horrible, and sounds like it would go against any "no calling" zone if they have one

Why would the police laugh them out of the door? They have a duty of care and this elderly couple are frightened about what these peoples intentions are

Brilliant. If he's availabke on Thursday morning, he should be there 💕

Shall I come over on Thursday morning and sharpen my billhook and splitting axe in the front garden?

I would also err on the side of caution and log with the police. Easy to leave an email or phone number but not don f so and visiting is aggressive

You too are wrong!

my local police definitely want to be told about this kind of thing & do what they can to stop it.

the police are there for allsorts of reasons, and if the elderly couple feel a little more at peace by reporting the letter to the police, then report it.

if there has been one other person who felt intimidated and reported it, it will flag up.

once reported, forget about and carry on with your life

Yes!! 😊

The thing is with HMOs are some landlords don’t follow the local council’s guidelines for minimum size room per tenant etc.

Some divide the rooms up.

I remember one 3 bedroom terrace house in the Midlands had 24 tenants as the lounge was a bedroom. There were 3 beds per room so tenants slept shifts.

This was highlighted during lockdown as tenants couldn’t self isolate

Get your friend to suggest or help the couple put their property on the land registry alert system

The cost of moving - money, physical and mental side is too much

You or your friend could ring Age UK for advice. They wouldn't be able to send anyone in person but may be keeping a log of these incidents and be able to give sensible advice and reassurance i.e. don't open the door.

No. Of course not.

no one is ever encouraged to intimate & state a time they will be turning up to discuss it.

I'd treat this as a safeguarding issue, personally, so yes I would call either the council or the police non-emergency line for advice and to make them aware. It's likely that others are being targeted in the same way and may not have friendly neighbours to confide in.

Definitely report it. Can the hulking brother be there just before 11 to answer the door?

I'm sure I read somewhere that you don't have to be the home owner (or get their permission) to apply for outline planning permission on a plot/property.

Then there are the scams where gangs look at the probate announcements and falsify wills in their benefit before the real beneficiaries even realise their relative has died. People will unfortunately pray on the elderly and the deceased in a very calculated, organised and brutal manner.

If anybody is interested try Grave Robbers which is I think a BBC podcast.

The government should take off stamp duty for people downsizing then, there should be incentives and also available bungalows etc built.

If I got a letter like this, even though I am quite capable of dealing with arrogant little shits, I'd still talk to the police via 101 because the might try the same thing on a more vulnerable person. I too often get letters along the lines of "people want to buy houses in this street" or more personally stuff like "I have a client who wonders if you want to sell" As I said, nothing directly to my name but I am not listed on the public electoral roll.
To be clear, i would not expect police to be rushing out to the house, but how will the know what scams are going on in their area unless they are told? Additionally you don't know how many other people have received similar latters and with no contact details on the letter this may be a chance to get hold of the person doing this and put a stop to it.
My last point is a bit of a stretch but can the people think of anyone who might have done this as a joke? I have seen similar letters on social media presented as "here is a funny thing you could do to someone" The most common one was about having a house large enought to take in Ukranian refugees.

For what? No crime has been committed. Just chuck it away and if he turns up, tell him the house is not for sale, its none if his business what size house they live in and to fuck off.

I wanted to correct the point that all HMO rooms are paid for the taxpayer. Sorry, I know it's not the point of the thread.

I live in an area with too many HMOs but most of them are occupied by:
Young graduate professionals starting their careers
'Divorced Dads' or otherwise single men on low to moderate incomes but working full time.
Students.

None of these people would qualify for benefits of any kind. With the exception of students, they probably live in them because of a shortage of 1 bed accommodation and 2 bed accommodation costing about 60% of one full time pre tax minimum wage income in rent alone.

the outline planning permission thing without ownership is true. https://www.planningportal.co.uk/planning/planning-applications/how-to-apply/who-can-apply