A Lesson Learned

We did our final house walk-through about two weeks before moving in to our new house.  The previous owners' son was staying here but aside of a few odds and ends the house was empty.  Their main moving had been done in June.  We had arranged with them to move in on September 1, paying a rental fee to cover until our closing date of Sepetember 15.  All of that went smoothly, without a hitch.  They left a few things behind but many folks do that so it was not abnormal.  We were rather pleased with the condition when we moved in.  One day I was working in my new kitchen after returning from our vacation home  when I commented that we would need to replace the kitchen faucet for one with a sprayer.   As I was going through pictures from our vacation I also looked through the pictures I had taken of our new house during our final walk-through.  You are not going to believe this!  The previous owners actually the from the looks of the pictures rather expensive faucet with sprayer with them leaving the plain jane model that is now in the kitchen.  Technically the faucet is considered a fixture so should not have been removed.  My husband called the real estate and left a message with our agent but I doubt they will return it.  I think it was a rather nasty thing to do especially when we paid them rent to move in early.  The problem is because I didn't go through the pictures during the move (14 days) because I was busy and the time we were on vacation, the previous owners can likely deny they took the faucet.  It's a lesson learned!

If buying or even renting a house/apartment, condo or any other domicile, take pictures before you move in.  Compare those pictures to the condition the place is in as soon as you get the keys preferably while it is still empty.  Note any discrepancies as well as take pictures.  Pay particular attention to any damage or removal of fixtures contrary to any offer to purchase or lease agreement.  Notify your real estate agent as well as your lawyer to resolve the issues prior to the closing date.  If leasing notify the landlord of the problem and if not resolved appropriately, notify your lawyer. 

Garden Gnome
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