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7 Questions You Should Ask at an Open House #5: What Furniture and Fixtures Are Being Sold With The Home?

By Emcee M. Arah

Real Estate Agent with Remax Excellence - Silver Spring, MD Maryland #318884

November 19, 2010 07:26 AM

An open house is a perfect opportunity for the listing agent to ask prospective buyers lots of questions, such as "have you been pre-qualified for a mortgage?" or "how long have you been looking?" Instead of being on the receiving end of all the questions, why not ask a few of your own? Questions that will help you decide if this is the perfect house for you or if you should walk away. Here is Question #5 of "7 Questions You Should Ask at an Open House."

7 Questions You Should Ask at an Open House

Question #5: What Furniture and Fixtures Are Being Sold With The Home?

If you're thinking of buying the home, there's no time like the present to ask whether the dining room chandelier, fancy window coverings and double oven are included!

So, the fifth question you should ask at an open house is what furniture and fixtures are being sold with the house. Don't assume that a fully-furnished, vacant house is being sold "as-is." It could have been staged that way so that prospective buyers can imagine what the house could look like. Vacant houses are harder to visualize as homes than furnished houses. Not only that, if it isn't in the contract, it is not guaranteed that it will be yours upon receipt of a successful offer by the sellers.

The bottom line is this... Questionable fixtures and furniture should be itemized in the purchase contract, regardless of any prior conversation. So, when Auntie Bess says "Oh you can have it, Dearie," be sure her listing agent puts it in the contract.

Emcee Arah
RE/MAX Excellence Realtor with Architectural Dimension
Serving all your Real Estate needs in MD, VA & Wash., DC

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Sharon Tara

Sharon Tara Transformations - Portsmouth, NH

Retired New Hampshire Home Stager

Very important thing to remember! I usually tell my staging clients if they have something that they can't live without, they better remove it so it doesn't become part of the negotiations.

Nov 21, 2010 10:53 AM

Emcee M. Arah

Remax Excellence - Silver Spring, MD - Silver Spring, MD

Realtor w/Architectural Dimension, AHWD CRS B-Arch

That's a good idea, Sharon. You never know when a buyer might fall in love with something in the house, not realizing it isn't part of the negotiation.

Emcee

Nov 30, 2010 12:21 AM

7 Questions You Should Ask at an Open House #5: What Furniture and Fixtures Are Being Sold With The Home?

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