Leaving a note for the buyers of our house when we move?

[ErlingHaalandsManBun]

Have you done this when you have moved?

I think I am going to leave them a note with some useful info on for them. So far I have got:

The codes for the outbuilding locks
How to read the gas and tell if you need to order more (we are on LPG)
Who our gas supplier is
Who services our boiler
Who cuts our hedges (they expressed an interest in getting this done also)
Who our window cleaner is (although we will cancel him before we leave)
When bin day is

Is there anything else you would include/have included if you have done the same for your buyer?

Anything else you would do/leave before you go?

I’ve always done this in the past, and when I bought my last house the vendor had left a folder with all the appliance instruction manuals etc in. which was so helpful.

I was all prepared to do this when I sold but sadly like others above, the buyers turned out to be such utter cunts that I didn’t leave them anything. Didn’t go as far as taking lightbulbs but I dug up loads of stuff from the garden.

I was tempted to leave a massive turd in the loo but the timing wasn’t right …

Thank you for this! It’s reassuring I’m not weird for being so sentimental ☺️

The people who sold us our house left a floor plan showing the exact colours of all the walls in case we needed to touch up any paint. Didn’t have the heart to tell them it was getting a full revamp! 😬

Yes

I let mine know what the paint colours on the walls were for the ones I knew. Absolutely not necessary but I know I would have appreciated it. Left a couple tins that I knew I wouldn’t need too

Also left a bunch of takeaway menus to be nice.

Omg, I would have appreciated this for the ‘whites’ in my house!!!

When we bought our house we were moving from a different area. The previous owners left us a folder with info like local doctor's surgeries, takeaways, nearest supermarkets, schools and facilities for children that we might be interested in as well as useful house info.
It was much appreciated

I included many of the sorts of things mentioned here when I sold my late parents' flat. I also included a note of when the smoke alarm batteries were last changed (it was recent - I'd sorted them) and the details of the company who managed the property's alarm in case the new owners wanted to reinstate that contract.

I don't buy alcohol so didn't leave them a bottle, but left a little box of nice chocolates instead and some lovely new soaps in the bathrooms.

I think this is a nice idea. Our vendors did this, and included the names of our next door neighbours, which was a nice touch.

We have some really annoying plug sockets e.g for the washing machine built into the back of a cupboard. It has to be fed through under the unit. Id have loved to have been left a note telling me this rather than us stressing trying to find it

Nice idea but be careful as we did similar and thought we were being helpful but we never heard the last of them. Questions were relentless and what we thought was a “gesture of goodwill” turned into a 24/7 helpline for someone who was not able to think for themselves.

Also be careful that you aren’t wanting to use those tradespeople you recommended again (especially if you remain local) as they may not thank you for landing them with a loon ( ours didn’t!)

Your mistake was leaving your contact details @categorychaos
I left instructions
I left manuals
i left tea, coffee, milk sugar and biscuits

I did not leave any contact details

We left a book about the local area.
And how to switch the hot water on.

A pack of preprinted address labels for anything that does not get redirected (you can pay the post office to do it but you will not be able to renew it if you let it expire). Christmas cards are particularly likely to arrive.

A note of the final meter readings on the day you move out (you will also notify these to the utility companies yourself) including the water meter, which you may find it difficult to read without a torch, ladle and rag. Photograph them with your phone. Code and instructions for burglar alarm,.

I left kettle, milk, tea, coffee, ugar, spoons, biscuits, mugs, loo rolls, basic cleaning stuff, spare light bulbs, paint, and asked if they could use the hoover, they said yes, so I left it.

Keys with labels, including the window locks.

I was on good terms with my buyers, and after a year they discovered some forgotten jewellery in a wall safe and posted it to me,

If you get relentless questions, say you don't remember.

Some great suggestions above. In addition, the vendors of our house left us manuals for appliances they left, receipts and contacts for people they used for services etc.

They also left a list of the paint colours they had in each room and the names of the neighbours either side (really helpful!)

That's lovely.

I think it’s a great idea,

our eldest has just moved into their own home and were left with nothing. Has had to find out bin days, hunt the house for the stopcock, the electricity meter aswell as the gas meter. The previous owner could have made things a bit easier.

a quick recap on how to work the boiler would have been good too.

local takeaway recommendations would have been good for moving in day.

If they're new to the area, a couple of takeaway leaflets or recommendations for the best chippy

We have a huge folder from our house previous owners!! Very useful- it has paint colours for each room, local tradespeople who’ve worked in the house, historic maintenance, etc
its amazing!

Have moved several times over the last few years and have left a note! Little things like when bin day is, where the stop cocks are, the gas and electric meters (and water meter) as it all helps! We spent a whole day looking for our solar meter - who would have thought it was in the back of a wardrobe?! Do d it accident! Our last move, we left tea, coffee, biscuits and flowers and we’ve become really good friends with them

Meant to say, found the solar meter by accident!

We’ve been in our house 18 years and haven’t found our stopcock. Now I’m think of asking my neighbours in case they know where ours is

Yes I’ve done a little manual each time. Bin days etc. I’ve also left flowers and a card.

I cried when I left my house of 22 years which really surprised me as I hated it for the last 10 years but I sat outside and thought of all the memories we had there and then said bye house and thank you.