If I bought a property and found valuables who owns them?

the_matrix

Hi MSEs

If I bought a house and found valuables in it / outside in the garden after the purchase who would own them / have claim over them? For example:

• Gold
• Silver
• Platinium
• Coins
• Artifacts
• Painting
• etc you get the idea

As always thank you for you kind assistance. :beer::beer:

the_matrix

Thanks MSEs for looking. If you don't know then where's the best place to ask?

G_M

If you're using a solicitor for the conveyancing, that might be a good place to start.

If you're doing your own conveyancing, then.... maybe you need o know stuff like this. It might be covered in one of the many DIY conveyancing books.

property.advert

I reckon I'd be keeping quiet about it until I knew 100% that I could dispose of them either legally or without being caught.

Get orm moi laaaand !

betsie

I believe it would be yours, you bought the house and garden, shed etc so it is yours unless it specificaly states on the chattles list that they were taking said items. If you have house insurance you normally get free legal advice with this, i would phone the legal helpline number on your home insurance and ask them, explain your situation (dont mention what the items are specifically) and they should be able to tell you what the legal stance is. It is then upto you to decide what is morally right.

phill99

There is a crime of 'theft by finding'. If you find something and you know it not to be yours and you keep it, then it is classed as theft. Where you have found it is completely irrelevant. Its just the same as finding it in the street. It was never meant to be yours.

If the vendors have confirmed in the conveyncing that they are giving up all rights to any chattels on the land, then they have given up their rights so the chattels are now yours. Unless this has happened, its still theirs and you would be well advised to hand it in to the old bill.

It may well be the hoard of a theft that a burglar has disgarded trying to get away from the police.

lynnemcf

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/property/4809706/Look-what-they-left-behind.html

The law is subtle when it comes to housebuyers picking up unexpected bonuses with their purchase. If a vendor leaves behind a treasure chest which was clearly not intended to be included in the sale, you cannot simply claim it: you have a duty to write and inform the vendor that he has left it behind and invite him to claim it by a certain date; if he fails to meet the deadline, the property becomes yours.

If, on the other hand, you dig up treasure in the garden of which the previous owner was unaware, the property comes under the laws of treasure trove. If it's gold and deliberately buried - to protect them, say, from being stolen during the Civil War - then the Crown has a claim on the property (though will pay you compensation); if, on the other hand, the treasure was simply lost or forgotten by a previous owner - then it is yours.

motherofstudents

My son bought a house last year and when we removed the kitchen units we found a bag containing expensive jewellery, rings, earrings etc and the one that really got to us, a little box with the name of the funeral director and the jewellery obviously taken from the previous owner who had died. We took them round to the son who had sold the house to my son and he was very grateful. That is possibly a different situation and easier to do the right thing.