Buyer has entered property pre exchange and started renovation

[Iwishiwasjoking]

We were supposed to exchnage last week, then yesterday, now the proposal is exchange and complete tomorrow, all delays on buyers side told its mortgage company releasing fund.

property was vacated last week, but I removed the last items yesterday. Went back this evening to do a meter reading. Garden dug up, carpets ripped out, all windows open, lights on.

I am so shocked I have no idea what to do now …technically is burglary … but if this sale falls through I have a much less saleable house …

and before you ask how has he got in, there was a lockbox with keys in that the estate agents have been using … so either they’ve shared the code with him or he’s watched them and then let himself in.

Considering that on MN where if one's husband/partner leaves a dirty cup in the sink the advice is LTB, so many people think that one should roll over when someone breaks in and makes themselves at home!

I would be renegotiating the commission paid to the EA.
Post exchange tho.

Wow-zers! The cheek of it.

Not pedantry at all, two negatives make a positive as in this case so 'being referred to as a whole' makes no sense at all. Either it's

I would say nothing
or
I wouldn't say anything

They're not the new owners until completion, they have stolen/destroyed the OP's property.

Yes, I know. Which is why I suggested the EA should improve training if that is what happened, and also give a discount and apology.

Or did you only read the first sentence of my incredibly long (4 sentence) post?

There is just no way this happened.

"I would say something and hope it goes ahead" makes no sense in the context of what the poster was saying (i.e. that she would not say anything - your two alternatives have the opposite meaning). Picking at the grammar of someone's post is pedantry in any case.

You had the key over post completion. How is this even legal?

*you hand the keys

That's a horrible slur, can you not?

It's neither of those.

She is saying she would say something/she wouldn't stay silent by saying nothing.

Marking my place here. We have a key safe and the neighbour who checks up on our (empty) house for us is perpetually worried that viewers will let themselves in later or steal the keys. I’ve privately considered her fears ungrounded but I’m now not so sure.

Did the EA tell them the code for the lock box or did they look over his shoulder?
If the former, he's liable, and if the latter, they have ?broken and entered (not sure what the equivalent would be if they didn't break anything!)

Except this stuff does happen, try being an estate agent for 20 years and you’d see it for yourself. Anyway, troll hunting is against the terms of this forum.

I reported it and it has thankfully now been deleted

I'd do this

I'm desperate for an update!

Aren't we all!

This is mad!

(I'm a partner at a firm of solicitors and specialise in resi property - so I've seen A LOT but not quite like this!).

It's the agent you have beef with OP. I would ask your solicitor not to pay their fee until you agree money off.

Wow. Just wow.

Hopefully it all goes through and no lasting damage, but we only ever say to allow access between exchange and completion and only then under the terms of a key undertaking.

Keep us in the loop - but defo tell your sol to retain the agent's fee until you've come to an agreement with them.

We have 2 occasions when similar happened in our family.
On one occasion a relative was in a nursing home and their home was being sold to pay for care fees. The estate agent had the keys and he lent them to the buyer to measure up before contracts had been exchanged. The buyer put pegs in the garden as he was planning to do an extension he also left the door to the garage unlocked. The garage did not lock so anyone cold have got in.
On another occasion a relative was moving in with someone else and and on completion day the money was not in the bank. When they phoned up they were told in would be there tomorrow but he wanted to move that day so he could make a few trips. Our relative refused to give the keys over.

I was cross enough when the buyer of the house we were buying somehow had the key before exchange and was going in to pick up post she had directed there. Luckily a neighbour saw her.

This is a whole other ball game.

Crazy, I hope it all goes well today

OMG. Vacant properties attract absolute cheeky fuckery.

I was pissed off when the agent started randomly letting my buyer in on a whim without my permission to measure stuff and get builders round.

Buyer then demanded I empty the house completely before she would exchange contracts... Erm, It's still my house & I can keep what I want there until the sale goes through (it was a trek & wanted to do final check/ meter checks/one last tip run in one visit).

In OPs case i'd have had the morning off & been round the agents in person demanding they visit the property with me to witness the shitness they had allowed to happen (while crossing everything for completion today).

Good luck OP. Awaiting a positive update.

She could have stopped well short of that without actually destroying their property.