Accepted offer on house sale - what about whats included etc?

DullGreyGuy

Assuming you're in England/Wales then anything is up for negotiation. Have to consider 1) what their offer was conditional on 2) what you state you are leaving 3) what you offer to sell and they agree to and 4) what they dont agree to buy but you dont want anyway. 

Our vendor did list integrated appliances as something not included but they were willing to sell. We declined them but they left them anyway. They also offered their freestanding appliances but in the end took them with them. They were moving into rented after selling to us so took the gamble they wouldn't really want these things (plus we wanted better fridge/freezer).

My understanding is that there are some minimums, so the bedroom ceiling light was listed as for sale and I believe had they taken it they'd had to have replaced it with a basic light rather than leave bare wires hanging out but it was another thing we declined and they left anyway. 

In principle they could charge you for disposing of items that they said they didnt want but you leave anyway, no idea how often that really happens. 

TheJP

Nothing is included until you agree legally. These people saying turn the house upside down etc have no idea. It doesn't matter if your fridge is bolted to the wall, if you want to take it then you have all the rights to do so.

EssexHebridean

Yes - light fittings are fair game but you are expected to leave flex, holder and bulb. Curtain rails are sometimes taken if they are particularly fancy ones - our sellers took a couple of specific ones but told us they were intending to do so - we actually replaced one of the with the same as they’d taken out! 😂 Top curtains are usually taken but folk generally leave blinds as they are specific to that window. 

As already said - you will be given a fixtures and fittings form to compete. 

Integrated appliances are generally left, same with things like fitted wardrobes - indeed, I would expect to be told at certainly a second viewing if not the first one if those were being taken as it not only means needing wardrobes but also probably some redecoration too. 

DullGreyGuy

EssexHebridean said:
same with things like fitted wardrobes - indeed, I would expect to be told at certainly a second viewing if not the first one if those were being taken as it not only means needing wardrobes but also probably some redecoration too. 

"Fitted wardrobes" is always a term that confuses me a little... most properties I've lived in have built in wardrobes, ie the walls between two rooms are 3' wide and in there, half for each room, is wardrobe built into the wall. This could be a simple rail and shelf or could be a whole set of draws, rails, shelves etc. Alternatively you have wardrobes that have been built for the room which attach to and take up a whole wall or some form of void. Never been sure if it covers both or just the one and at what point post building ones go from being wardrobes to fitted wardrobes. 

The former the wardrobe itself cannot really be taken but the innards could. The later is very much removable. 

I wouldn't really say it's a "second viewing" thing, it's a negotiation in the process. If you want them to stay you say your offer £300,000 for the place inc the wardrobes. If you aren't bothered you offer £298,999 and see what they put on the fixures and fittings and the price next to them if they intending to take them but will sell them at the right price. 

MeteredOut

DullGreyGuy said:

EssexHebridean said:
same with things like fitted wardrobes - indeed, I would expect to be told at certainly a second viewing if not the first one if those were being taken as it not only means needing wardrobes but also probably some redecoration too. 

"Fitted wardrobes" is always a term that confuses me a little... most properties I've lived in have built in wardrobes, ie the walls between two rooms are 3' wide and in there, half for each room, is wardrobe built into the wall. This could be a simple rail and shelf or could be a whole set of draws, rails, shelves etc. Alternatively you have wardrobes that have been built for the room which attach to and take up a whole wall or some form of void. Never been sure if it covers both or just the one and at what point post building ones go from being wardrobes to fitted wardrobes. 

The former the wardrobe itself cannot really be taken but the innards could. The later is very much removable. 

I wouldn't really say it's a "second viewing" thing, it's a negotiation in the process. If you want them to stay you say your offer £300,000 for the place inc the wardrobes. If you aren't bothered you offer £298,999 and see what they put on the fixures and fittings and the price next to them if they intending to take them but will sell them at the right price. 

When building a new build, you can only get a VAT reclaim on fitted wardrobes, not freestanding ones. And, for that, it means that the wardrobes have no back (ie. they are effectively a set of doors dividing the room, and the insides are the room walls) so cannot be feasibly removed.

EDIT: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/vat-refunds-for-new-builds-if-youre-a-diy-housebuilder

You can also claim for basic wardrobes installed on their own with all the following characteristics.

1. The wardrobe encloses a space bordered by the walls, ceiling and floor. Units, for example, whose design includes an element to bridge over a bed or create a dressing table are furniture and cannot be claimed.

2. The side and back use 3 walls of the room (such as across the end of a wall), or 2 walls and a stub wall. A wardrobe installed in the corner of a room where one side is a closing end panel is furniture and cannot be claimed.

3. On opening the wardrobe, you should see the walls of the building. These would normally be either bare plaster or painted plaster. Wardrobes with internal panelling, typically as part of a modular or carcass system, are furniture and cannot be claimed.

4. The wardrobe should have no more than a single shelf running the full length of the wardrobe, a rail for hanging clothes and a closing door or doors. Wardrobes with internal divisions, drawers, shoe racks or other features are furniture and cannot be claimed.

DullGreyGuy

MeteredOut said:

DullGreyGuy said:

EssexHebridean said:
same with things like fitted wardrobes - indeed, I would expect to be told at certainly a second viewing if not the first one if those were being taken as it not only means needing wardrobes but also probably some redecoration too. 

"Fitted wardrobes" is always a term that confuses me a little... most properties I've lived in have built in wardrobes, ie the walls between two rooms are 3' wide and in there, half for each room, is wardrobe built into the wall. This could be a simple rail and shelf or could be a whole set of draws, rails, shelves etc. Alternatively you have wardrobes that have been built for the room which attach to and take up a whole wall or some form of void. Never been sure if it covers both or just the one and at what point post building ones go from being wardrobes to fitted wardrobes. 

The former the wardrobe itself cannot really be taken but the innards could. The later is very much removable. 

I wouldn't really say it's a "second viewing" thing, it's a negotiation in the process. If you want them to stay you say your offer £300,000 for the place inc the wardrobes. If you aren't bothered you offer £298,999 and see what they put on the fixures and fittings and the price next to them if they intending to take them but will sell them at the right price. 

When building a new build, you can only get a VAT reclaim on fitted wardrobes, not freestanding ones. And, for that, it means that the wardrobes have no back (ie. they are effectively a set of doors dividing the room, and the insides are the room walls) so cannot be feasibly removed.

And yet Sharpes and all the rest call the wardrobes they make to fit your space "fitted wardrobes" and thats why I get confused 

MeteredOut

DullGreyGuy said:

MeteredOut said:

DullGreyGuy said:

EssexHebridean said:
same with things like fitted wardrobes - indeed, I would expect to be told at certainly a second viewing if not the first one if those were being taken as it not only means needing wardrobes but also probably some redecoration too. 

"Fitted wardrobes" is always a term that confuses me a little... most properties I've lived in have built in wardrobes, ie the walls between two rooms are 3' wide and in there, half for each room, is wardrobe built into the wall. This could be a simple rail and shelf or could be a whole set of draws, rails, shelves etc. Alternatively you have wardrobes that have been built for the room which attach to and take up a whole wall or some form of void. Never been sure if it covers both or just the one and at what point post building ones go from being wardrobes to fitted wardrobes. 

The former the wardrobe itself cannot really be taken but the innards could. The later is very much removable. 

I wouldn't really say it's a "second viewing" thing, it's a negotiation in the process. If you want them to stay you say your offer £300,000 for the place inc the wardrobes. If you aren't bothered you offer £298,999 and see what they put on the fixures and fittings and the price next to them if they intending to take them but will sell them at the right price. 

When building a new build, you can only get a VAT reclaim on fitted wardrobes, not freestanding ones. And, for that, it means that the wardrobes have no back (ie. they are effectively a set of doors dividing the room, and the insides are the room walls) so cannot be feasibly removed.

And yet Sharpes and all the rest call the wardrobes they make to fit your space "fitted wardrobes" and thats why I get confused 

Yes, a bit ambiguous - I suspect thats because they typically fit them snug to walls so are no longer freestanding.

EssexHebridean

I’ve always thought of the two as being the same thing to be honest - but I have never lived in a property new enough to have had the wardrobe built in as part of the build, so maybe that’s why? What we have here are (I think) IKEA ones which have been constructed to essentially form part of the room - to take them out would leave the room looking really strange!