House move request

I would be annoyed with the Estate Agent who passed on their unreasonable request. The agent is working for you, right?

The people who bought our last house wanted everything brand new so ripped out the old bathroom and kitchen. We saw the bath and basin on the front lawn as we happened to be passing and rescued the bath which I still use everyday. The basin had been smashed. We asked for the Rayburn too but they wanted money for that so we paid them.
(We had moved to turn an industrial building into a home our big project )
They invited us to see all the changes they had made and foolishly we went back to see white paint on the beautiful oak panelling, concrete slabs over the old brick path, a favourite tree felled. We just had to suck it up. No longer ours.....

Houses in my area are selling at ridiculous prices and within days of going on the market.
Just do as someone upthread suggests, if they don’t want it as seen put it back on the market and ask for more.
When buying my present house, the sellers asked if we wanted to buy a light fitting, it was elaborate and old fashioned so I said no.
They explained that they didn’t want to pay an electrician to dismantle it, so, when we had one of our choice fitted would we deliver the old one to them.
They never got it although they did ask within days of us moving in if it had been taken down, they never asked again.
Some people have no scruples.

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I don’t think so !!!!!

I'm with everyone else. Heck no. They buy the house as it is and they can do any work they want done when they move in. They're just trying to pass the expense to you.

Definitely say no. The nerve of it. Nowadays, I think they have to have permission from the council to pave over a garden.

I’m a retired solicitor NannyB2604 and I hope you’re taking all this wise advice to heart! Do nothing, it is up to them what they do after completion of the sale (and once you’ve got the money!)

But if there is anything nice in your garden which you’d like to move with you or share, I’d be saving some big pots with a view to do that, as others have suggested.
I’d be remarketing it but that’s just me thinking about your pretty garden (and your poor neighbours if you like them!) Stay strong and don’t be bullied, good luck!

Definitely no. What a Liberty.

There are rules in place now for paving over Front Gardens, see Planning Portal U.K.

Let them sort it out themselves.

Huge no from me! Imagine if they then decide to make other requests or heaven forbid they fail to proceed at the last stage. Have they never bought a house?

Tell them to do it themselves. They saw the house as it was. They can't start asking you to make alterations. What if they said they didn't like the colour scheme so could you buy their choice of paint and redecorate before you move? Or would you replace the carpets? They're just taking the p.

No you are not being unreasonable. Cheeky bug...rs!
It reminds me of when we moved, the purchaser asked that we should leave the nails in the wall because “they too had a lot of pictures”! I had intended to but the request so annoyed my that I took out every single picture hook and just left the nails...

Absolutely totally NO! Obviously I don’t know how desperate you are to sell but I would tell the estate agent to remarket AND increase by a couple of thousand!!!

If these people really want it they will s*1t themselves ?. Ridiculous to ask for anything after agreed sale. Good luck

avitorl

It would be a definite no from me but I would agree to them having it done after exchange of Contracts and at their own expense too.

I wouldn't do that either, not at all.
Things can still go wrong even then.

They bought the house as seen - what they do with it after completion is up to them.

Some people have a nerve, they are just trying it on.

Think they’re trying to pull a fast one; tell them to take a running jump.

Firstly, I wouldn't do anything at all until you have exchanged and completed on the sale, and secondly, just do what suits you, perhaps move some of the shrubs with you, or give them to friends? After one of our house moves, I was saddened to see the from garden which I had nurtured, and which contained a beautiful tree, had been raised to the ground and paved to make way for cars and plastic bin stores. Had I known their plans, I would have taken most of the shrubs and bushes with me. On another note, I feel for your neighbours having to look out on a caravan and tatty old cadillac. How tacky

No way would I agree to that! You will have enough stress to deal with in the moving process and there are so many stories about buyers withdrawing at the last minute. Wouldn’t it be awful if they withdrew and then the cut back shrubs and hedge put other potential buyers off as Flexiblefriend just said?

It's a pain. What did your Agent say? I would let them deal with it but you can't risk altering anything before a sale.

Surely you buy as house 'as seen'. All too often new owners change everything inside, even newly fitted bathrooms etc. They don't expect the sellers to make those alterations for them, so changes to the garden are the buyers' responsibility too.

I'd say 'No, not fit enough for physical work like that'. But I'd be inclined to take any shrubs that might survive a move for your new garden!

I don't think you are under any obligation to carry out this work. When we were buying our house our solicitor picked up on some old clause which said no bushes should be higher than 5' in the front garden. They were twice that height. We brought it up with the sellers who replied that they had lived happily with the high bushes with no problem, but if we wanted to chop them back we could do so when we moved in! We still went ahead and bought the house .... and cut down the bushes.

I disagree Cornishpasty. When you buy a house, you buy it as is. I have never ever heard of someone asking a vendor to start the new buyer's renovation project for them. What will they want next, the kitchen refitted?

Depends on how keen you are to sell. If you want to sell then are you willing to pay someone to do what they have asked.

3nanny6 - if it is social housing, then presumably the landlord is a housing association (or possibly council if any still do housing). If so, they will have a formal complaints procedure.
However, the way you mention "landlord / he" makes me wonder if it is a private landlord (who had possibly been used by the local council, a fairly common arrangement)
I would contact your local environmental health department, explain your concerns (keep a record of your conversations with the landlord) and ask their advice.
Normally I would suggest copying in your local councillor, but at the moment, copying to your MP might be better.

It is unacceptable for you to have to deal with this. I suspect a private landlord was letting to the local council for a vulnerable person, and is now in a dispute about who pays for the clear-up. But involving Environmental Health & your MP should speed things along.

Good luck

NannyB2604; The garden at the front of your house sounds lovely. It is up to the new owners to make the changes once they go in there it is not your job to do.

I have a proper mess next door to me it is social housing which can be brought but my neighbour did not buy it. Sadly he died just over three months ago and there is loads of rubbish piled up at the front and even his car is there.
I have endlessly asked the landlord of next door about the mess and all he says is he is looking into it. I am fed up with it and soon there is going to be vermin nesting there, I wish I was moving out.

Cheeky gits no don’t do anything and oh dear poor neighbours having to look out onto a concrete jungle with a caravan and Cadillac after having nice shrubs to view