If you are selling your current home and moving somewhere far, you might consider including your furniture in the sale. However, before deciding to do so, you should know that this could end up in different circumstances that could range from getting a higher price for your property to messing up the whole deal. You read right. Unfortunately, including your furniture does not always sweeten the pot.
Whether you admit it or not, emotions play a big part when you’re negotiating over the value of items that have sentimental value to you but are nothing more than just a decoration to the buyer. On top of that, contracts usually get a little too complicated when you have to create addendums for things like your furniture.
It Does Change Your Home’s Value
Your furniture’s value could possibly affect the amount a borrower would receive from the bank or other lender. If you include your furniture’s value in the contract, it creates a sales concession. What happens is that the lender would deduct the concession amount from the total selling price of the house. So if the final price of the house is set at $300,000 and a written sales concession shows that the negotiated price for the furniture is $30,000, the bank would only consider a mortgage for $270,000. You can avoid sales concessions when you list the furniture as having no value in the contract.
The Final Contract Should Be Checked Multiple Times
Both the buyer and the seller should explicitly instruct their own agents to thoroughly check the conditions stated in the final contract; more so if negotiations were done for specific pieces of furniture to be included in the sale. Normally, the rule is for all the appliances and furnishings connected to the house be included in the sale. These include built-in shelves, chandeliers, and air conditioning systems. Sellers, however may consider them personal property and opt to negotiate for their sale or just take them when they leave. Buyers could either agree to the charges or dispute the claims. All the conflicts as well as the final decisions should be disclosed with the agents and lawyers involved in the sale. The final agreement of course, should be in writing before any contract is signed.
Furniture Can Be Used to Reach a Satisfactory Agreement
On the brighter side, negotiating for furniture can be used by both parties to reach agreeable terms. How does this work? If a buyer feels that the price is too high or the seller refuses to settle for anything lower than the selling price, it may be suggested for the furniture to be included in the price. This usually makes the buyer feel a bit better about the final price and the seller gets a satisfactory payout.
Are you planning to sell your house with your furniture? Let’s talk about how we can make the best deal out of your plan. Call us!
