From the Legal Hotline: When the MLS Lists Personal Property That Sellers Refuse to Give Up

July 01, 2019

Hotline callers frequently ask what happens when the MLS lists personal property as part of the property for sale but sellers subsequently refuse to give up the personal property. For example, the MLS lists a refrigerator as part of the property for sale, but the seller insists he is taking it or that the price of the refrigerator is not included in the asking price.

Ultimately, the sales contract controls how that personal property will be treated. Therefore, a buyer’s agent should always attach the signed Non-Realty Items Addendum to Contract form (TXR 1924) to ensure the buyer has a claim to the personal property in the sales contract.

Prohibitions against misleading advertising in the Real Estate License Act, TREC rules, the MLS rules, and the Code of Ethics may provide avenues for redress against listing agents who advertise personal property in the MLS despite knowing the seller does not intend to include that personal property in the asking price.

Iman Ali, associate counsel

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