When you and another party settle on a specified contract, you expect them to follow what has been signed in writing, right? Unfortunately, one Michigan home buyer discovered that you can’t just trust a seller’s word, even when it’s in writing. The buyer initially purchased the house under the agreement that the seller would leave all its contents in place, including furnishings, decorations, and other personal items, such as a piano. However, while the sale was being processed, she discovered that the seller’s daughter snuck into the home without consent and emptied it, stealing everything.
“When we arrived after closing today, the house was pretty much emptied out,” she said, not knowing initially why everything was gone. The Michigan woman and her husband immediately contacted their realtor, who connected with the seller’s realtor, and the explanation left them dumbfounded. The seller’s daughter had recently purchased a storage unit. She then visited the house in secret, removing everything from it that had been indisputably listed as items that would stay in the furnished home. Of course, calling the police would be the first move, but the couple’s realtor recommended they wait first to get a response from the seller about this unexpected turn of events.
In the Michigan home buyer’s Reddit post about the incident, some of the top commenters seem a little in disagreement as to whether the daughter committed a crime. One user claims that this is a “breach of contract, which is civil and not criminal.” So, it’s unlikely that the police would get involved. Of course, that would be a different story if the locks were changed and the daughter still broke in, they claim. “But OP bought those items, so they were effectively robbed. How can this not be criminal?” another user asks in disbelief. To which I would have to agree — locks changed or not, the daughter went into a home that wasn’t hers and took items that were now under the ownership of the home’s new proprietors.
However! Many people believe the items were removed before the sale closed, so technically, the sneaky daughter didn’t ‘steal’ anything. However, whether it was a breach of contract or robbery, this entire incident was highly fishy regardless. And if the seller was aware of their daughter’s actions, then that makes it even worse. That said, the daughter was not an owner of the house, as stated in the contract, according to OP. Therefore, she had no right to breach the contract and collect the house’s contents. Hopefully, the Michigan couple will be able to retrieve the belongings rightfully promised to them.
