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I have a question concerning the present perfect and the simple simple.

Talking about the story of a family, which of the following statements is correct:

  1. My aunt has found a new job in Melbourne so they moved there.
  2. My aunt found a new job in Melbourne so they moved there.

As the fact of finding a job has an effect on the present, I would say the first one is correct. On the other hand, there is a mismatch between the two tenses. Can you suggest which statement is correct and which one is incorrect?

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    The fact of finding a job may have effect on the 'present' ... "My aunt found a new job in Melbourne so she and my niece moved there. Later, they moved back here to Sydney again." // "My aunt has found a new job in Melbourne, so they have moved there." As an aside, note that it is the 'effective', ie at time of speaking, present.
    – Edwin Ashworth
    Commented Nov 23, 2019 at 11:18
  • Thanks for your clear answer.
    – Francesco Marchioni
    Commented Nov 23, 2019 at 11:32
  • I used a 'comment' to answer because I'm pretty sure (1) this has one or more duplicate and (2) it would take me 30 minutes + to find it/them.
    – Edwin Ashworth
    Commented Nov 23, 2019 at 11:41
  • @Edwin: Yes; a comma before 'so' is important. What do you think about "My aunt found a new job in Melbourne, so they have moved there"? Finding the job happened (a clear simple past); and moving followed, say very recently...?
    – Ram Pillai
    Commented Nov 23, 2019 at 13:54
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    Nota Bene: You should write 'I have a question concerning the following'. Saying 'I have a doubt concerning the following' sounds strange in English. This is a common error of speakers of romance languages, and also of Indian.
    – shumble
    Commented Dec 16, 2021 at 4:42

1 Answer 1

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Either is good, but the clauses must agree. Note commas.

  1. My aunt has found a new job in Melbourne, so they have moved there.
  2. My aunt found a new job in Melbourne, so they moved there.

Sentence #1 suggests recent time.

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  • Sentence two is fine: simple past tense in both clauses. There has to be a reason for using the present perfect rather than the simple past. The first sentence conveys no more than the second. If the sentence were "My aunt has found a new job in Melbourne, so she will move there," then the sentence has a meaning different from the simple past.
    – Zan700
    Commented Apr 15, 2022 at 1:53

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