October 2025 Great Lander Mat Su with Real Estate

Ask Cora

Hey Cora, I am moving out of state, and I really don’t want to sell all my stuff, can I leave it with the home that I am selling? Signed Footloose and Fancy Free

Dear Footloose, that’s a good question. And yes, you can – but there are a few caveats with that. You know how I love my bullet points, but let’s start with a “bill of sale” and move on to bullet points just for fun.

Bill of Sale is a document that lists out what you want to leave with the house and is signed by both buyer and seller. As realtors, we use a bill of sale for things that remain with the property to help out both buyer and seller. It lists all kinds of things, like fridge, washer dryer, dog run, oil tank even the OIL in the tank! But you can add whatever you want. The Bill of Sale will put a dollar amount on the things you want to leave, or you can have zero in there for compensation.

As Realtors, we really don’t like getting involved with too much stuff because honestly, we are not used furniture salesmen. We do this as a courtesy, for buyer and seller to move smoothly through the transaction and for both parties to be able to get or have what they need. But this CAN get complicated. Here are some positives and the negatives about the bill of sales and hopefully this incredibly useful information will attach itself to the sticky side of your brain.

1) Seller can be free to leave things that are very expensive to ship to a new location This benefits both parties.

2) Lawn mowers and other garden tools are a popular thing to have on the bill of sale. Chemicals also are impossible to move, and many times get left in the garage or shed. If, as a buyer, you do not want the responsibility of disposing of these (Round-Up, fertilizer, plant food etc.) ask the seller in writing to have them removed before closing.

3) Plants, indoor plants hate moving vans! I have seen some very large plants left in the hands of

Experience Matters!

a new owner. Buyers and sellers should check and make sure that the plant base has not damaged the floor. There was one house that had hardwood floors and under the plant, after the sellers had moved there was quite a bit of damage to the hardwood flooring from overwatering the plant. “Feed me Seymour!”

4) Mounted TVs are something that is usually left because the seller doesn’t want to repair the holes in the wall. This is really nice, my advice, make sure the remotes that come with the TVs are left in the home. Sometimes, they get packed and then you have a really nice TV with no remote.

5) Security systems that are paid for are left many times, mostly because the seller doesn’t want to have to patch holes in the walls. Some of these devices have a subscription that costs money every month – some system equipment is still being paid for by the seller. Best to have something in writing that states that the system is paid in full just to confirm payments aren’t lurking like ninjas in the background.

6) Sometimes, there is a dining room chandelier that is not staying with the house. My mom had an ugly chandelier that she just loved that she dragged around the state from house to house! She would replace the fixture with something else and then take her “beloved” hideous light with her. Buyers should make sure that they love that fixture, which is staying with the house. Sellers, if you are taking it with you, replace it BEFORE it goes on the market.

7) Washer and Dryers are not considered part of the sale – they must be on the bill of sale if they are being left with the house. Now, a couple of things on this one; I have seen this happen, the buyer asks for the washer and dryer, the seller agrees, before closing the seller replaces the washer and dryer with a different set, usually one of lesser quality. That’s not nice – but it happens, your realtor is here to prevent that from happening.

8) Oil in Tank? What? Well, fuel oil is expensive and if the seller had just filled up their 300-gallon tank, it could be a couple of thousand bucka-roos. Sometimes, the seller asks for the tank to be “measured”, and they ask the buyer to pay for the remaining gallons in the tank.

9) Storage sheds do need to be on this bill of sale.

I have had issues with this before, the seller is getting divorced. The wife is awarded the house and sells the house WITH the storage shed. 7 days before closing, the shed is gone! Because the ex-husband hired a towing company to come and get his shed. Yup it’s happened. They are not usually on a permanent foundation and therefore are considered personal property.

10) Refrigerators can also be sticky wicket; they too are considered personal property. They too have been “swapped out” just before closing.. Now, as you can imagine, this could be very unfortunate because refrigerators today are so expensive and I swear, with just a smidge more technology, they can even get up and take your kids to school! Just make sure that it’s spelled out that the fridge that was in the home when the offer was written, stays with the home!

A Bill of Sale can be your friend or your foe. Just make sure that if you are a seller, you are CLEAR of what you are leaving. If you are a buyer, make sure you are CLEAR as to what you want, no replacements. Now, is it time to buy or sell? Call me and we can discuss it.