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Original poster

FFS! Vendors want to take cooker with them - is this normal?

153 replies

WestMeerkat · 16/07/2016 09:38

We have just received the fixtures and fittings form and discovered the vendors are excluding the fancy double-width range cooker in the kitchen from what is included in the sale.

Is it normal practice for people to take their cookers with them when they move? I know technically it's free standing and not like a built-in oven and hob, but since it's connected to the gas supply which can only be disconnected by a qualified tradesman, it feels like it should be classed as a permanent fixture. It's not like a fridge that you can just unplug yourself and walk off with!

I am a bit shocked to be honest. The range cooker is the centrepiece of the kitchen, and the units and surfaces on either side have been built perfectly up to the edge of the range, and there is large double-width extractor hood above it. To be honest I wouldn't have chosen anything so fancy myself, but it's not like we can replace it with any old cheap cooker, it has to be something that perfectly fits the large hole that will be left behind, otherwise it will just look odd, and ruin the really rather nice kitchen.

I feel a bit robbed as we offered on this house partly on the strength of the lovely kitchen, and now it feels like its heart is being ripped out.

Is there anything we can do? If not, we are now going to have to budget to buy a fancy double width range - which I know aren't cheap! Also we are going to have to deal with the stress of trying to get a brand new range installed and fitted to the gas supply on moving day, before we can actually cook any food for ourselves! Really not what I need. Angry

OP posts:
Aworldofmyown · 16/07/2016 10:44

White goods and ovens are not usually items that you leave behind.

Would you expect them to leave a sofa because it fits perfectly in the gap under the stairs? Or a bed if they had fitted wardrobes around it?
Your being very unreasonable.

And, this comment is all thats wrong with the way be buy and sell houses in Britain Angry

can you say ..well i don't want the house now the cooker won't be there?

Pestilence13610 · 16/07/2016 10:49

What make is the range?
In the meantime one of these is a bloody godsend.

LyndaNotLinda · 16/07/2016 10:51

If someone told me that they were going to reduce their offer by over £2k because I wasn't leaving a free standing appliance behind, I'd tell them to take a running jump. It's not built-in.

My house has a space that fits a double width oven which the people who were renting the house bought off the vendors when they moved out. I just bought a new one. It fits perfectly into the hole.

lalalonglegs · 16/07/2016 10:54

People are weird when it comes to stuff like this. I know someone who was buying a house and the vendor said she was taking all the fireplaces and mantelpieces unless the offer was upped Confused. Who in their wildest dreams would assume that those weren't included in the sale?

ExtraHotLatteToGo · 16/07/2016 10:55

Do this:

OhTheRoses (10:23)

OK op, here's how it goes. I assume the form is being returned via your solicitor

"we had assumed the cooker was included in the price, are the vendors prepared to leave it? If they are taking it, I have sourced a reasonable replacement which I comparable to the existing cooker. It will cost £2200 including delivery and fitting. We are therefore reducing our offer by £2,200 for the property."

If the deal's this far down they probably won't want to start all over again. The form might be an error. Either way they'll probably leave the cooker or negotiate the money off down to about £1125 and you can buy that £700 cooker and some new china for your new kitchen.

Good luck

Pestilence13610 · 16/07/2016 10:56

I took out a Rangemaster, I put in a Rangemaster. £640, I shopped around. Don't panic, you can sort it for a reasonable price.
Unless it is one of those 110cm gaps, when it becomes a bit of a pain.
Measure well, think about putting the same make in.

FFS! Vendors want to take cooker with them - is this normal?
venys · 16/07/2016 10:57

Anyway, agree with pp. Get a plug in induction hob for cheap ( if your pots are compatible) in the meantime. That's a permanent fixture in our house - we sit it upright to give us extra bench space when we are not using it.

ExtraHotLatteToGo · 16/07/2016 10:59

It's ridiculous that cookers/ranges are considered 'free standing appliances' as they generally have the work surfaces, tiling, splash backs etc fitted specifically for that appliance and it's not as if you can unplug it and carry it out as they're generally either gas or hard wired.

Most overseas countries you'd no more take the cooker than you'd take the bath.

Shizzlestix · 16/07/2016 10:59

YABVVU, IMO. Don't assume anything will be left unless you ask or its specifically stated. Why on earth would they leave a really expensive cooker? And it's vu to reduce your offer based on this.

Wolpertinger · 16/07/2016 11:02

Check the particulars of the house - does the estate agent describe it as 'a designer kitchen with range cooker' or 'with space for range cooker' - if the former then it's time to start playing hard ball over negotiations.

You've got this far into the sale and they won't want to lose you. Do not let on at any point that you didn't like the cooker much and could replace it for £750. It is your dream cooker and frankly without it you are considering pulling out of the sale - follow OhTheRoses advice and Good Luck.

AbyssinianBanana · 16/07/2016 11:03

Lots of baths and kitchen unit are freestanding too these days. Would you be taking them too?

mishmash1979 · 16/07/2016 11:03

We had this happen when we moved. Huge range cooker that made the kitchen was not included. We asked about it, they wanted £1000 for it, we offered £350( going rate on eBay), they said no less than £900, then £800. We offered £500 and they still said no. In the end we got pissed off as we were arguing over a few pounds so we asked them to remove it and provide documents to show it was removed professionally . This cost them £80; which was more than the difference between our final offer and their minimum acceptance price!!! I think they were just pissed off we got the house for a lot less than they wanted ( property investors and it was due to b repossessed)

FourForYouGlenCoco · 16/07/2016 11:05

Ooh, love your kitchen Pestilence! Love the sink 😍

wowfudge · 16/07/2016 11:11

This kind of thing is exactly why the forms are provided for vendors to complete. The EA's details for the place will have a disclaimer as to accuracy. When you buy property in the UK the general principle is caveat emptor - never assume anything and always check anything which is not clear.

We had some if this when we bought our house - things we weren't expecting to be left were included and a couple of things that we thought would be were not. We negotiated and happily didn't pay any extra for the things we wanted.

We were however left a stack of stuff we were not expecting at all, but that's a whole other thread.

Grumpysfirstwife · 16/07/2016 11:25

I can't understand why it's not included. Surely a kitchen needs a cooker otherwise it's just a big utility room? I wouldn't dream of removing a sink so it doesn't make sense to remove a cooker either especially if the kitchen is built around the cooker.
As it happens my parents bought a house with an aga in the kitchen. The vendors wanted £6000 for it my parents said no and asked them to remove it. They did remove it and actually took it to their new home but it wouldn't fit into their new kitchen so then tried to offer it to my parents for £3000 they still said no, my mum doesn't like cooking so it would be redundant most of the time, eventually they gave it to my parents for free because it was easier than selling it themselves and was costing them storage fees. My mum now has a beautiful aga shaped work unit because she can't work out how to use it for anything other than storing pans and paperwork in Grin
Obviously that's not helpful to you but if you like the cooker then ask if it's for sale if it's not included or for sale ask them to remove it fully and make good any damage to work surfaces when removing the cooker and to replace any mismatched tiles. They may think this is too much hassle and leave it for you.

TSSDNCOP · 16/07/2016 11:33

My tip: don't buy a smeg

SparkleSoiree · 16/07/2016 11:45

A kitchen needs a cooker like a bedroom needs a bed but you wouldn't leave the bed, would you?

It's it's not part of the fixtures and fittings then it's the personal property of the vendor.

If a buyer started making ridiculous suggestions of large price drops to buy a new cooker I would walk away from the sale. That is not negotiation, that's railroading and nobody likes to walk away from selling their house with a bad taste in their mouth.

DameDiazepamTheDramaQueen · 16/07/2016 11:52

My tip: don't buy a smeg

Agree, avoid like the plague!

I wouldn't assume the oven was staying. We took our last one with us as this house didn't have one.

DameDiazepamTheDramaQueen · 16/07/2016 11:54

I would never walk away from a house deal over something as daft as taking a cooker!

Scarydinosaurs · 16/07/2016 11:58

YABU I never assumed ovens were included. And estate agents always have given guidance when I enquired- some of them knew the owners intended to take, others had to ask.

Bentedbigmess · 16/07/2016 12:01

We had this nonsense when we sold. Our buyers wanted us to leave a 6 month old huge Rangemaster and hood AND fridge as fixtures and fittings. We said no way, they were coming with us. Much arguing and derisory offers and we said no, our stuff would fit nicely in the new house and if they wanted them they could pay us. As it was their offer collapsed! Other buyers were even more loopy and had "assumed" our garden furniture was included too as it "fitted so nicely"!Shock
I sold it to them but they were arsey and begrudging as they wanted it for free! Grabby buggers.

Lucked · 16/07/2016 12:11

Ranges come in set sizes which all the manufactures use. Measure up before picking.

We just bought an induction rangemaster, if we had to move I would be tempted to take it.

Lucked · 16/07/2016 12:15

Last time I sold they wanted my sofa, my bed and the dining set! I felt like they were treating my house like a furniture showroom.

I now wished I had given them the sofa, it has ended up unused in an outbuilding.

RepentAtLeisure · 16/07/2016 12:16

Maybe you could get a standard cooker and fill the space with a free standing cabinet?

Neglectedbythesun · 16/07/2016 12:19

I've got a nice cooker but my house is worth no more because of it. It makes the house more sellable but not more valuable. If I move I would want to take it or sell it to the vendors. However, it's the first time I have spent money on a cooker so I totally see where you are coming from. I'd be
disappointed too. Maybe see if they can move slightly on it.