When you buy a home, do you know what’s included with the sale?
What’s Included With The Sale?
When you purchase a home, there aren’t any rules as to what is included in the purchase.And that’s because every transaction is unique. However, there are some items that are usually included.
Unless it’s a knock down property, the building(s) is included. In order to close the sale, the seller needs to provide a Certificate of Occupancy. The Certificate of Occupancy (CO) requirements vary from town to town. The object of a CO inspection is to ensure that the property is fit and safe for people to live in.
Fire Code CO Inspection
It seems many towns, in order to reduce costs, only do a fire inspection. With a fire only inspection, there must be smoke and carbon monoxide detectors, in addition to a fire extinguisher. Each town has it’s own specifications as to the style of fire extinguisher, most towns follow building code guidelines.
Complete CO Inspection
Many towns require a more complete CO inspection. Most towns require a heating system, however, air conditioning is not necessary. Also required are a working bathroom, a working kitchen sink, a stove and hot water. Unless it’s a handyman special sale, these items are always included in the sale. Possibly they’re not all in working condition, but they are included. In this case, the town can issue a provisional CO, allowing people to move in after the repairs are completed and re-inspected.
What’s Typically Included
Now that we’ve gone through what the towns require, let’s talk about the rest. Typically, many items are included in the sale, but not always. Most of the time, the refrigerator, washer / dryer,window treatments,garage door opener,light fixtures and ceiling fan(s) are included. I like to use the premise that if it’s attached, it stays. But again, not necessarily.
In the MLS Listing, you’ll see listed what is and what isn’t included in the sale. As a rule, personal property (furniture, pictures etc.) aren’t included. However, sometimes items aren’t listed either way. When we write a contract for a purchase, if any of the items above aren’t listed as included on the MLS Listing, we add those items to the contract. If the seller agrees, they stay. If not, it’s a negotiable item.
For some reason. many people seem to have a strong attachment to the dining room chandelier. As a result, commonly that item isn’t included. If it’s removed, the seller must either put a cover on the receptacle or install a replacement fixture.
What Else Stays
There’s no reason why you can’t request the seller leaves an item that’s not normally included in the sale. In that case, we add them to the contract. As a result, we’ve included many items in the home purchase. A few items we have gotten included with the sale are Pool Tables, Projection TV, Various furniture, Garage refrigerator and Freezers. But one thing I’m prod to have gotten for the new owner is…
A BMW 325i
Bottom Line
A few things are necessary to remain with the house. Everything else is negotiable. If everything that will remain is spelled out in the contract, there will be no mistakes.
When you’re ready to either buy or sell a home, please give us a call.
Would you rather look at active adult communities in Freehold? The communities are Riviera, The Enclave, Regency at Freehold and Silvermead.
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