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Original poster

Sellers not removing items - saying it's 'sold as seen'

121 replies

Newusernameaug · 30/08/2023 10:31

I'm a cash buyer, no chain but the sale has been ongoing since April (so the last thing i want to do is delay it further....)

We're very near completetion and so asked to view the house again last weekend to measure a few bits and pieces up.

The house has stood empy for all this time and nothing has moved since we first viewed, so I emailed the sellers via the solictor and asked what items they would be removing as I may be interested in buying some and would the house be cleaned so i can preapre for the move.

The seller has responded 'I have no intentions of entering the property again so I won’t be cleaning it or removing anything. In my opinion it is sold as seen, therefore all the items will be left in for the buyer to keep or remove'

I've only purchased houses twice before - but is this normal for people to just abandon anything that's left for the buyer to clear out?

There are some bits and pieces such as a large wardrobe etc I wouldn't mind, so do I just accept this? However there is also lots of junk left behind! Any thoughts would be welcome.

OP posts:
ricekrispi · 30/08/2023 19:09

@MissLucyEyelesbarrow Yes! And always delivered in such a definitive way.

grass321 · 30/08/2023 19:15

My buyer left her stuff everywhere. In fairness she was elderly but had adult children living locally and plenty of money to get help.

Every cupboard and drawer was full of crap and she left a load of knackered furniture. My son (then under 5) found a rifle in the wardrobe in his room. Thanks for that.

It was really annoying as we couldn't move our stuff in and had to hire a couple of skips to clear it all. Looked at claiming the cost back but my solicitor (who's also my friend) said it wasn't worth the cost of trying.

grass321 · 30/08/2023 19:15

*my vendor

caringcarer · 30/08/2023 19:21

Price up a skip and get that knocked of purchase price. As it is you will have loads of cleaning to do.

TheCrystalPalace · 30/08/2023 19:29

I can't believe what I'm reading here!
Let it go???
No WAY!!
Do some of you have any idea of the cost of one skip, let alone the fact that a whole house of crap might need several. Plus, many areas have refuse tips that also charge for certain items. Reputable house clearance companies will cost too.
You MUST get these costs reimbursed. It will be bad enough having to deep clean the place but would I chuff clear someone else's shite from the loft/shed too. That's a massive job.
They're cheeky fuckers who are trying it on. "Sold as seen," my arse.

good96 · 30/08/2023 20:15

Wow - I would definitely view the property again to see what you want to keep and what you don’t.

I would definitely also drop your offer to cover the costs of a House clearance- get a few quotes and present the highest quote - and then go for the lower one 😉
You won’t need to provide receipts - the vendor clearly doesn’t care- unless it is a probate property and doesnt want to go back in - which is understandable- but still, the property should have been cleared - even if they sent someone in to do it.

CountryCob · 30/08/2023 20:17

@ricekrispi yes who knew a legal term which can require a judge to define it according to the circumstances could be so easy to explain? Not sure what the civil action would look like to uphold said right. Hopefully as straightforward as a Google search and also free and quick.

lljkk · 30/08/2023 20:32

It doesn't sound horrendous to keep or get rid, so I wouldn't get stuck on this. Compared to cost of whole house, doesn't sound expensive to get rid.

SilkenPilken · 30/08/2023 22:34

Don’t bother with a skip. Just get a rubbish clearance company in. They’ll have the whole lot in the back of their truck in no time.

Anything sellable put on Gumtree if you can be bothered.

GrimGrinningGhosts · 31/08/2023 00:28

a story from the other side…

when my mum died the buyers of her house were especially enamoured with an ornate mirror in the bedroom and a large decorative fender around the lounge fireplace. I hadn’t listed them on the forms but knowing how the lady had talked about them I decided to leave them for her in situ.
in the garage my late father had a built in work bench at the end, much like you’d build in kitchen units. It was well made and part of the fixtures really, hence not something I thought to include on the form as being left.

completion day comes, I’m dealing with it as best as I can given I’m an only child and this was the house I was born in. 5pm DH, who had given the buyers his number, gets a furious phone call from the husband. He was shouting and complaining and how dare we leave our junk in the garage and we would be paying him for a skip etc. transpired he was referring to the built in units.

DH went straight round, knocked on the door and being sickly sweet apologised profusely, adding that he’d return for the units the following day, oh and we’d also left a fender and a mirror so he’d take those now. Man went in, clearly spoke to his wife and returned a bit sheepish and said not to worry, he’d sort out throwing the units as they were having a skip anyway to but the kitchen.

I often think back to it and I really hope the mirror fell off the wall and the fender tarnished.

pilates · 31/08/2023 00:42

The seller needs to give vacant possession on completion. If not, I would get some quotes for house clearance and tell your solicitor to deduct from money sent on completion.

Underminer · 31/08/2023 00:56

My brother bought a house that was an estate sale. The family didn’t want any of it, but also didn’t want to remove anything. They said they were leaving everything in situ and it was his on completion. He was pissed off at first, but didn’t want to hold
up the sale.
When he went in and cleared the stuff, the elderly gentleman had hidden money all over (taped to back of drawers in envelopes for example) and there was quite a bit of expensive watches and jewellery. He asked his solicitor who said it was all his to keep and the sellers had firmly stated through their solicitor they didn’t want anything from the house and would refuse to accept anything from it. Backfired on them!
Total money found £12,300 and jewellery made £3,000. He kept some bits furniture and gave most of it to the British Heart Foundation, who collected.
So check around, you might find some cash!

Laughingravy · 31/08/2023 08:47

The house we are buying is a chaotic dirty mess and we are not hopeful either of the residents will be willing or able to clear it so we'll either withhold funds or take out an indemnity - and will likely be doing a pre-exchange visit. At least we know so it won't come as a surprise or be a major issue. And we have somewhere to live until it's sorted. But it's easy to imagine how it can add to the stress.

RidingMyBike · 31/08/2023 14:34

At least you know about it! Our seller was elderly and overwhelmed and didn't quite get round to packing despite delaying exchange for a couple of months so he had time to pack. He ended up with a skip on the drive on completion day, was several hours late handing over the keys and ended up walking out leaving loads of stuff behind. And the house absolutely filthy.

Our solicitor got £500 back from him to pay for house clearance. House clearance then cost us £700. So either get another viewing and take a house clearance company to quote for you or get the EA to do it. We could have got rid of some of it ourselves via Freecycle or charity shops but lack of time and the hassle involved meant we didn't want to do that.

Northernladdette · 31/08/2023 17:49

Surely it’s up to the solicitor to advise his client that the house is to be sold with vacant possession? Sounds like a cop out on his behalf.

Pertinentowl · 31/08/2023 17:55

So when they sell the house with things in it, how do they.. you know the thing where they check the plumbing and electricity and stuff. And maybe foundations. Do they move around the rubbish?

Katmai · 31/08/2023 18:53

I don't know why I'm reading this thread, we've just spent weeks of our spare time clearing out a massive probate sale house, and it's bringing it all back...
😮😫🙄😐😅

celticprincess · 31/08/2023 19:02

Wonder if the seller is selling it due to inheriting it from someone? We sold my late father’s home recently and went through his personal stuff and took what we wanted, a few other useful bits we also took. We then bagged up all confidential waste and paid for that to be taken away. We then paid a house clearance firm to take the rest and totally clear the place. After that we paid for a cleaner to clean the place. All before it went on the market. The house needed a lot of work doing on it anyway and no way would I have just left it all for the buyers. They really need to sort this out before you exchange contracts. You could get a quote but they’d need access to the property to see what’s to be done.

WhenLifeGivesYouLimes · 31/08/2023 19:23

Pertinentowl · 31/08/2023 17:55

So when they sell the house with things in it, how do they.. you know the thing where they check the plumbing and electricity and stuff. And maybe foundations. Do they move around the rubbish?

Surveys are normally done while the house is being lived in. You don't move all your furniture and possessions out for a single day while the sellers/mortgage lenders get a survey done to decide whether they want to proceed with the contract!

Casperroonie · 31/08/2023 20:26

You can still pull out, sometimes things happen for a reason. Market has changed so you could even get more for your cash.

Get a quote for movers/ taking to dump and get their solicitors to agree it via your solicitor.

If not happy keep an eye out before exchange, something else might be there for you...

Casperroonie · 31/08/2023 20:28

Savemesos · 30/08/2023 16:56

Our sellers tried this on moving day. We got to the house while they were still packing and there was crap (nothing decent) everywhere, which they were planning to leave!

Our removal man offered to dispose of it for a cash fee and blocked the driveway while they went to get the money. Some people are just bloody chancers!----

Edited

Your removal man sounds wicked!!! 🤣🤣 fair play to him!

Zanatdy · 31/08/2023 20:37

I wouldn’t accept that, I mean yes you might benefit from a couple of wardrobes but you’re going to have to hire a skip for the rest. It’s not the norm to sell as seen, that’s just lazy on their part.

Casperroonie · 31/08/2023 20:38

TheCrystalPalace · 30/08/2023 19:29

I can't believe what I'm reading here!
Let it go???
No WAY!!
Do some of you have any idea of the cost of one skip, let alone the fact that a whole house of crap might need several. Plus, many areas have refuse tips that also charge for certain items. Reputable house clearance companies will cost too.
You MUST get these costs reimbursed. It will be bad enough having to deep clean the place but would I chuff clear someone else's shite from the loft/shed too. That's a massive job.
They're cheeky fuckers who are trying it on. "Sold as seen," my arse.

Edited

I know, i can't believe it!!! A skip is about £400 isn't it???? Plus cleaning someone else's c**p 🤮🤮🤮. Imagine doing a house move and arriving at your new place turned into a dump. Not for me...!

TammyJones · 31/08/2023 20:44

I was under the impression if you left a single thing in your house when selling the new owners could be you.
You have ti remove it unless stipulated.

WhenLifeGivesYouLimes · 31/08/2023 20:53

Casperroonie · 31/08/2023 20:38

I know, i can't believe it!!! A skip is about £400 isn't it???? Plus cleaning someone else's c**p 🤮🤮🤮. Imagine doing a house move and arriving at your new place turned into a dump. Not for me...!

Show quote history

A skip is a significant sum of money, but in return the OP will get some items of furniture that she definitely wants and which she was about to offer the owner money for, and some additional furniture and contents which may well have a cash value (albeit at the cost of some work on her part finding a purchaser).

We don't know how the two factors balance out against each other - it could go either way. But if it was a real hoarder's tip full of crap I'm sure she'd have mentioned it - it's presumably a normal home full of a normal amount of normal stuff.