An urban myth and its real-life understanding

[snopes]

A seller was so unhappy with the outcome of a sale that he removed all the toilet paper and all the light bulbs from the house before closing. He then scheduled the closing for 4 PM, leaving the new owners in the dark and without bathroom material. I also heard it as 4 PM on a Friday of a holiday weekend, when it would be hard to get light bulbs and toilet paper.

http://www.boston.com/realestate/new...an_myth_a.html

[Lainie]

Even 40 years ago, stores did not close for entire holiday weekends.

[Chloe]

I was shocked to discover the fridge missing on my last walk-thru, since it had specifically been included on the MLS sheet, and that the MLS sheet has been updated and changed. Luckily I was able to produce the original, and was credited several hundred dollars, but I still had to spend the weekend hurriedly buying and arranging for the delivery of a fridge.

[Simply Madeline]

Do people typically move in immediately after closing? And not pack any toilet paper/light bulbs?

[erwins]

Yeah, if they'd just closed, then they also wouldn't have things like beds, or couches, or in some cases, appliances. If they were moving in right away, then they'd likely have a lamp or two and some toilet paper anyway. Plus--convenience stores.

It certainly isn't impossible or even improbable that it happened. It's just that as a mean and petty way of showing displeasure at a deal that you agreed to, it would be remarkably ineffective.

[crescent]

Originally Posted by Simply Madeline

Do people typically move in immediately after closing? And not pack any toilet paper/light bulbs?

I moved in a few hours after closing - I had been living in a motel while waiting. I had no furniture at all, until the movers arrived the next day. I only had the few bags I had with me in the motel.

I don't think my case was all that rare, although it probably is not the most common way of doing it.

By the way - my house had one role of TP per bathroom, one lightbulb per room, except the kitchen, which had none. No fridge or stove, but we knew about that already.

[Avril]

I've never had toilet paper, already there, in any place I moved into fresh (if I moved in with someone else, obviously, there was toilet paper). But I've only rented.

And light bulbs do nothing for you if there's no overhead lighting, which has been the case in many places where I've moved (aside from the bathrooms and kitchens). So also no lighting right away.

But you can find these things, amazingly, at many stores that are open after 5:00 and on weekends, perish the thought.

[Gutter Monkey]

My brother bought an investment property earlier in the year and he dropped by one day to have a look at it before the settlement cleared and discovered that thieves had crawled underneath the house and stolen all the copper pipes. He would never have known except someone had turned the mains back on and he could hear the water gushing out under the house. Since the property was still in the estate agent's hands they had to get the pipes replaced via their own insurance but if my brother had discovered the theft after settlement then it would have been his own problem since at that point there would have been no way to prove when the theft had taken place.

On settlement day he was at the property with one of the estate agents and he noticed that the lights weren't working. The agent said that was probably because he hadn't had the electricty connected yet and he replied that he'd organised it a few days ago. The agent told him that the plumbers had noticed some severed wired under the house ... it turned out that the thieves had also stolen as much of the copper wiring as they could grab and the estate agents 'forgot' to mention it. Luckily my brother caught it in the nick of time and the agency had to organise an electrician to repair all that damage as well.

It all turned out to his advantage in the end because the rickety old house he'd bought now had brand new plumbing and wiring at no additional expense.

[Gibbie]

I didn't expect there to be toilet paper and we knew that the sellers were taking a specific light fixture (but left the old one there in it's place). We moved in the day after closing but went to the house after we got the keys, walked through again and made note of things we'd need and then went shopping. Surprisingly even though it was a Friday after 4pm all the stores were open and we had no problem buying toilet paper and light bulbs.

Gibbie

[Aud 1]

That's interesting about the playsets. Our yard has a dug in play ground. The previous owner had made pains to indicate that it wasn't included and he'd move it to his new house. He stopped by as we were moving in and we negotiated a nominal amount for it. He said he'd send us a bill but never did. I guess it was ours anyway.

This article was much more interesting than the headline let on.

[damian]

Originally Posted by Avril

But you can find these things, amazingly, at many stores that are open after 5:00 and on weekends, perish the thought.

My local 7-11 is open past 6pm on weekends.

[UrbanLegends101]

When we moved into a rental property outside Clark AB, Philippines, in 1989, there were no light bulbs in the entire house, as best as I remember. It was just normal, apparently, for rentals in the Angeles City area that the new occupants had to supply all new bulbs. Naturally, when we moved out four months later, I took all the bulbs with me.

[Hero_Mike]

My aunt and uncle moved in to find light bulbs and fixtures missing, as well as cover plates for switches and outlets, curtains, etc. Apparently the previous owner of the house thought that anything that she put into the house, she could take. Not so - the real-estate agreement is pretty clear about this and the standard agreement would require her to leave anything that is "installed" - so anything that is not fastened, nailed or screwed in is fair game, but light bulbs, light fixtures, cover plates, faucets, shower heads - all have to stay. Window coverings too, though often a specific one will be excluded.

When moving, I made sure that the first items in the first box to unpack are TP, dish soap, and hand towels.

The only time I have even seen convenience stores closed, or "closed early" was the day before US Thanksgiving in some smaller US towns. Even the McDonald's closed at 8pm that night. I have always noticed at least a few such places open on holidays like Christmas or New Years' Day, maybe because they stick out so much amongst the otherwise closed shops. Especially pharmacies - with Christmas, New Years', and Easter falling during the wintry cold/flu season in Canada, there was no shortage of a need for OTC meds.

[Lainie]

I think one of the reasons convenience stores are called that was that years ago, when they first started springing up, they conveniently were open before and after the operating hours of more grocery stores. But even when grocery stores had much shorter hours than they had now, they weren't closed all weekend.

Re: packing lightbulbs, it sounds like more trouble than it's worth to me.

[Hero_Mike]

Originally Posted by Lainie

Re: packing lightbulbs, it sounds like more trouble than it's worth to me.

For the budget-conscious, replacing any CFL (or LED) bulbs with plain-old incandescent lights can certainly save a few dollars with next to no outlay. The cheapest of the cheapest of incandescent bulbs are only something like 15 to 20 cents a piece. They're not that hard to pack either - just squeeze them in to a box of rags.

[Lainie]

Good point. I was imagining someone packing conventional bulbs.

[overyonder]

Originally Posted by Hero_Mike

For the budget-conscious, replacing any CFL (or LED) bulbs with plain-old incandescent lights can certainly save a few dollars with next to no outlay. The cheapest of the cheapest of incandescent bulbs are only something like 15 to 20 cents a piece. They're not that hard to pack either - just squeeze them in to a box of rags.

That's if you can still find them...

MC

[NorthernLite]

My MIL used to sell real estate about thirty years ago. She used to do a quick inspection the day before possession and leave a four pack of toilet paper along with her business card. She said she couldn't believe how many calls she got from new home owners thanking her for her consideration.

[A Turtle Named Mack]

Originally Posted by NorthernLite

My MIL used to sell real estate about thirty years ago. She used to do a quick inspection the day before possession and leave a four pack of toilet paper along with her business card. She said she couldn't believe how many calls she got from new home owners thanking her for her consideration.

A little consideration goes so far. There was a law firm here that would mail things to the courts with a stick of mint gum in the envelope. The weight and the scent made it obvious, especially since the clerks came to know very soon what was going on. That firm's mailings always got quick and efficient filing and returns. It was just a stick of gum, but it was a welcome treat and got attention.

[Kallah]

Originally Posted by NorthernLite

My MIL used to sell real estate about thirty years ago. She used to do a quick inspection the day before possession and leave a four pack of toilet paper along with her business card. She said she couldn't believe how many calls she got from new home owners thanking her for her consideration.

I grew up in a full house, and then bounced around with one set of roommates or another for many years. When I was packing up to move to my current town, and preparing to be totally on my own for the first time ever, my (then) boyfriend helped me round up some essentials. One thing I didn't even think of until he mentioned it was a shower curtain, even though I'd already gotten a set of bathroom towels and rugs. I'd just sort of taken for granted that there had always been a shower curtain in every bathroom I'd ever shared, and that there would be one waiting for me at the new apartment. As luck would have it another friend of mine heard about the move and brought me a "welcome to living in a tiny apartment" collection of incredibly useful things, including a snazzy ring-less shower curtain. I guess my mind filed the shower curtain off with the window dressings, as "part of the house/apartment".