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<\/a>How to determine the value of furniture<\/h2>\n
To be honest, it\u2019s difficult to stay objective when setting a price for your own furniture. Sentimental value, original cost, and endless \u201cwhat ifs\u201d over whether you should hang onto certain items or try to fetch more for them through a consignment shop can skew your numbers high.<\/p>\n
Keep in mind that selling the furniture to your buyer does offer a few conveniences, namely, that you won\u2019t have to haul the furniture out yourself or spend time listing and selling it elsewhere. If the furniture isn\u2019t going to fit in your new abode, selling it to your buyer is a seamless way to avoid storage costs<\/a>, too.<\/p>\n That said, you don\u2019t want to give away the farm.<\/p>\n \u201cSelling furniture along with a house is the hardest thing because the seller and the buyer have two different ideas about what the furniture is worth,\u201d shares Allison Van Wig<\/a>, a top real estate agent in Los Angeles County.<\/p>\n \n\n\n\n\n Selling your house soon? Connect with a top agent near you to get an expert opinion on how much your house will sell for, what to fix before listing, and the latest local housing market trends.<\/p>\n \n Follow these steps to set a fair price for any items your buyer would like to purchase, so that when it comes to negotiations, you aren\u2019t flying blind:<\/p>\n You can\u2019t expect to command retail value for your used furniture, but the original price gives you a reference point to work from. That receipt will also tell you how old the furniture is, and where it\u2019s from. If you can\u2019t find your original receipt, check the furniture for any identifying marks that indicate its age, brand, or model number so that you can look up the piece online.<\/p>\n Once you have the overall specs for your piece of furniture, start fine-tuning your calculations. Subtract value for the following:\u00a0<\/b><\/p>\n Similar to how you would use recently sold homes in the area as a reference point to price your own house, you should also get a sense for the going-rate of comparable furniture being sold in your locale. Browse the furniture section of Facebook Marketplace<\/a> and Craigslist<\/a> for your ZIP code, and get even more granular by checking out furniture listings on Nextdoor<\/a> featured in your neighborhood.<\/p>\n For pieces made by a trendy furniture maker, check sites like AptDeco<\/a> who factor the brand name into their used pricing. You can also check your pricing expectations against furniture available at your local thrift stores, consignment centers<\/a>, or auction houses<\/a> (they\u2019re not just for antiques and artwork anymore).<\/p>\n If you know or suspect that you have furniture that\u2019s antique or retro, contact a reputable antique dealer<\/a>, high-end auction house, or an estate sales company<\/a> to get a valuation for those period pieces.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019ve had situations where I\u2019ve insisted that the sellers call in an estate salesperson to evaluate the furniture. I\u2019ve seen mid-century modern furniture, which is in high demand, and antique furniture from the 1930s,\u201d recalls Van Wig.<\/p>\n \u201cI even had a display case filled with Hummel figurines that just looked like china figurines to my sellers who had inherited the house. I had them bring in an estate salesperson who found that many were worth $200 apiece or more.\u201d<\/p>\n Should your expert confirm that your special pieces are indeed antiques or high-demand retro items, it\u2019s probably best to sell them after your home sale closes, or you might wind up accepting less than it\u2019s truly worth.<\/p>\n Armed with all of this information, you\u2019re ready to set a price for your furniture. Assuming that you\u2019ve put your antiques aside, if your furniture is newer, in great condition and has a trendy brand name, you might ask as much as 70% of what you paid<\/a> for it. However, if your furniture has aged 9-10 years, you should expect to fetch more like 25% to 33% of your original purchase price<\/a>. If you\u2019re still struggling to set a price, use an online furniture valuation calculator such as Blue Book Furniture<\/a> and Splitwise<\/a> for additional guidance. These tools take into account your piece\u2019s age and condition, as well as the original purchase price.<\/p>\n Finally, you need to clearly communicate how much you\u2019re charging the buyer for each piece of furniture. \u201cYou don’t want any mistakes when selling furniture, so I tell my sellers to put a tag on it with the prices they want,\u201d explains Van Wig. \u201cDuring the home inspection, the buyers make a list of what they want to purchase from the seller at that price. That list comes to me and we arrange to get paid for the furniture. That way it\u2019s very clear to everyone involved what\u2019s staying and what\u2019s going.\u201d<\/p>\n Bundling furniture into a real estate contract gets tricky because the value of your home is not based on the contents inside. The quality of its materials, square footage, number of beds and baths, and the desirability of your location \u2014 these are the features and qualities that determine value. While appliances, light fixtures, window treatments, and any other bolted-down items are expected to stay with the property, a random couch or table that the buyer asks you to leave does not make that property worth any more. Knowing that, here are the two main ways to handle a furniture deal as part of a home sale.<\/p>\n Let\u2019s say the buyer makes you an offer of $350,000. You know they\u2019re interested in certain pieces of furniture, so you counter at $355,000, plus throw in the patio set and living room pieces they requested. In this type of scenario, you won\u2019t be able to reference the furniture deal directly in the contract. Instead, you\u2019ll need to document the exchange using a contract addendum stating that the furniture has no value<\/a>.<\/p>\n According to 2020 guidelines from Fannie Mae, non-realty items such as furniture or other giveaways are considered sales concessions<\/a> and must be deducted from the sales price of the home. Remember: Lenders finance the property itself, not the stuff inside \u2014 they aren\u2019t going to loan the buyer money for a couch and pool table, as nice as that would be.<\/p>\n In addition, you\u2019ll need to disclose the furniture sale to the appraiser, who will not account for the furniture in their assigned value. In other words, the house will need to appraise at the agreed value of $355,000 independently of the furniture exchange you\u2019ve negotiated with the buyer. If the appraisal comes in below contract price, either you or the buyer will need to make up the difference for the mortgage to go through.<\/p>\n All of this may sound a bit deflating, but it doesn\u2019t mean your furniture is worth nothing. \u201cAdding an addendum stating that the furniture has no value is just a paperwork thing. The furniture can have value between the buyer and the seller, but it cannot have value for the lender,\u201d explains Van Wig.<\/p>\n If the above option sounds too risky and complicated \u2014 i.e., you could raise the price of the home based on furniture value, only for it not to appraise \u2014 there is another and more common way to sell furniture to your buyer. It goes something like this: The buyer gives you cash based on your agreed price. And you provide them with a bill of sale<\/a> for the items. The whole exchange takes place outside the real estate contract. Done, and done!<\/p>\n \u201cTypically, the buyer has to write the seller a check for the furniture that they\u2019re buying outside of escrow,\u201d explains Van Wig.<\/p>\n She says this is the route most sellers go for all the reasons mentioned above:<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s difficult to include furniture in negotiations because the appraiser will not count the value of the furniture toward the value of the home. And you typically can’t incorporate the furniture as part of the sale\u2019s contract because the lender is lending on the home, not its furnishings.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n Perhaps you recognize that your furniture is out of style or it won\u2019t physically fit in your new residence. Maybe you\u2019d like to slash your moving expenses by eliminating a truckload of heavy hutches, sideboards, and a massive pull-out sofa. In that case, you may be tempted to market your furniture as part of your listing. However, we asked Van Wig about this, and she advised against it. Instead, play your cards tight to your chest, and don\u2019t let buyers know you\u2019re interested in selling the furniture until you\u2019ve reeled them in.<\/p>\n\n <\/div>\n \n Step one: Talk to an expert!<\/h3>\n
1. Find your original receipt and collect key details.<\/h3>\n
2. Get a sense for how well your furniture has aged.<\/h3>\n
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\n<\/b>Add value for the following: <\/b><\/p>\n\n
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3. Find listings for similar items online, in thrift stores, or at auction houses.<\/h3>\n
4. Bring in an expert to value special pieces.<\/h3>\n
5. Set your price, but prepare to negotiate.<\/h3>\n
6. Add your price tags.<\/h3>\n
<\/a>Your options for selling the furniture to your buyers<\/h2>\n
1. Include the furniture in a contract addendum, knowing the deal has no value to lenders or appraisers.<\/h3>\n
2. Sell it separately from the home.<\/h3>\n
Should you mention furniture in the listing to begin with?<\/h2>\n