Are Wall Mounted TVs a Fixture?

March 19, 2010

wall mount tv in a tucson home A new twist in selling real estate – over the past few years, it has become more and more popular to have those flat panel wall mount TVs.  I’ve had a few myself, installed the TV mount to the wall, cut holes for cables to run behind the tv through the wall.  Those usually aren’t small holes created when you mount a TV to the wall.

The general rule of thumb is that fixtures stay with the house when it sells and personal property is removed by the owner.  So with flat panel TVs, what’s a fixture and what’s personal property?

Another general rule of thumb – if it would cause damage to remove it, then it’s a fixture.

So, in my humble opinion, the TV itself is clearly personal property.  You can remove that from the wall mount system without causing any damage.  But what about the mount itself?  Removing that from the wall usually leaves at least 4 large holes in the wall.  Which I think is clearly damage, which would make that wall mount a fixture.

Now, not every wall mount fits every TV.  And some home buyers will place their TV set in a different place than the previous owners, or may not have a wall mount set at all.  Some buyers will want the wall hardware to stay, and some Sellers will be expecting all that hardware to go with them when they move.

Best bet is to always specify.  If you’re buying a home with a wall mount TV and you expect the mount to stay – say so in your offer.  If you expect it to go, specify that the holes be patched and painted.

Avoid surprises and address it as soon as possible.  And get that agreement in writing!

Posted by Kelley Koehler | Filed Under sell-tucson-real-estate | Leave a Comment 

Equal Housing Opportunity Realtor