diff --git a/torchchat/cli/download.py b/torchchat/cli/download.py
index 14c19f943..0a912e014 100644
--- a/torchchat/cli/download.py
+++ b/torchchat/cli/download.py
@@ -149,6 +149,12 @@ def download_and_convert(
         model_config.distribution_channel
         == ModelDistributionChannel.HuggingFaceSnapshot
     ):
+        # Check if model is already downloaded in the old location
+
+        if os.path.exists(models_dir / model_config.name):
+            print(f"Found model artifacts in {models_dir / model_config.name}. Downloading in Hugging Face cache...")
+            shutil.rmtree(models_dir / model_config.name)
+
         _download_hf_snapshot(model_config, hf_token)
         return