Proper purchase agreement language for purchasing a furnished home.

[bocajim]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? FL (Palm Beach County)

I am in the process of buying a house, as the title states, it comes furnished. What should I get from the seller to ensure that there are no ambiguities regarding what furniture is included?

Currently we have a signed purchase agreement that leaves some openings for interpretation because it only states "furnishings specified in the MLS XXXXXX listing" which provides pictures of most of the furniture as well as a brief list of the items included.

Some people (not real estate attorneys, or anyone else "in the business") have insisted that I secure additional information ranging from:
1. Pictures of each individual furniture piece.
2. Serial numbers for each furniture piece.
3. Detailed summary of each piece with descriptions.
4. Combination of the above...

I have asked that we amend a list of each item with pictures to the purchase agreement, but I want to make sure that this amendment will be enough.

While I should have figured this out before signing a purchase agreement, I can still get out of the agreement if I need to. The seller has indicated that he is willing to amend the purchase agreement, so if I'm going to make the changes, I should do this right.

Thanks in advance.

[justalayman]

the more information you have, the less chance of a misunderstanding.



this should be an addendum to the contract and simply list each piece of furniture with whatever is needed to be able to identify the piece by the description. Adding pics would only help in making sure there is agreement in everything.

[nextwife]

Are you financing the purchase?

If so, The furniture should actually be a seperate agreement. Lenders do NOT want their mortgages to include "personal property". They do not allow personal property, beyond what is attached to the real estate, to be part of any purchase they finance. If there is FURNITURE and other stuff included, it should really be a side agreement for cash, and not part of the sale of real estate.

But the side agreement should be an item by item list. Digital photos attached should eliminate any misunderstandings of what items are included.

[justalayman]

Originally Posted by nextwife

Are you financing the purchase?

If so, The furniture should actually be a seperate agreement. Lenders do NOT want their mortgages to include "personal property". They do not allow personal property, beyond what is attached to the real estate, to be part of any purchase they finance. If there is FURNITURE and other stuff included, it should really be a side agreement for cash, and not part of the sale of real estate.

But the side agreement should be an item by item list. Digital photos attached should eliminate any misunderstandings of what items are included.

I acknowledge the fact it should not be included in the mortgage but I believe it should still be part of the buy/sell agreement. If entering into a seperate agreement for just the furniture, what happens if the house sale goes south? There is still the contract for the furniture, which either party could force to be enforced.

The furniture can be listed in the buy/sell agreement and the purchase money can be seperated from the mortgage loan money. That would make the furniture deal contingent on the house sale and the house sale contingent on the furniture deal.

When I used to write deals, things such as window treatments, and appliances were often included in the buy/sell agreement and none of them are considered chattels unless built in. There was even the occasional rug or unique piece of furniture. It's all in how you write it into the deal but it is definately a part of the deal.

[bocajim]

Thanks for the replies. I understand that most banks don't like financing furnished home purchases, but my lender didn't have a problem with it. I'm on a path to forge ahead and get the list finalized complete with photos, but I'm not going to go as far as require serial numbers of each item.

Thanks for the help!