Here are my 2 cents and hope this helps. I just sold my house with all the furnishings. It is a larger home than you’re looking at, 6 bedrooms, 4100 sq ft. Every room is decorated impeccably, a lot of expensive furnishings. It took me close to a year to finish/furnish it after the remodel 3 years ago and every piece is under 3 years old. I received 5 offers all over asking (all asked for furniture) and we took the one that was 45k over asking to include all the furniture. Yes it is used furniture, but the time and effort it took me to make sure everything went together, the returns I had to make, the deliveries I had to deal with, the sheer amount of time researching and putting rooms together and doing design boards - that is what is worth even more than the actual furniture prices. They’re getting a whole house put together. So if it is worth that to you, you’d like to just move in and be ready to live (it is obvious you must like the furniture since you’re considering buying it), then the price sounds fair.

@K R, thank you. That helps. I'm also considering that it will be a pain for them to have to move and sell all that furniture, so there is that dual benefit.

Are you interested in "just" the furniture? Or everything else, too? Our in-laws sold their home to someone who wanted it as a second home. The buyers wanted everything! silverware, coffeepot, towels, etc. Which, in a way, makes sense because they wanted a place to go play golf, and didn't want the expense and trouble of furnishing and buying a bunch of stuff.

I also think that there may be tax benefits to apportioning different amounts to the furnishings, as opposed to rolling it into the sales price. Not only real property taxes (depending on your state), but also capital gains taxes (in some circumstances), etc. Consult with your tax advisor.

For me personally, I enjoy very much shopping on Craigslist, Offerup, etc, and I pay so little for actual furniture that I probably wouldn't pay more than $200-$400 for a big sofa, or $100 for an armchair or dining table. But I realize that for me it's a hobby and fun, whereas most folks would probably dread all that stuff. It also depends on how nice the furniture is, whether it's to your taste and fits the rooms very well, etc. I think it's a decision only you can make!

Finally, if you do decide to do it, make sure you take photos and/or video of everything all over the house, inside and out, to ensure you get everything you are paying for.

If you are looking for a home loan, then the furnishings do not count. Only the house is appraised. If you are paying cash, then it won't matter. So the house is $300K, for example, plus $30K furnishings, you can only get a conventional 80% purchase money loan for $240K.

We like all the furnishings. Since the home has been an airbnb for the past year, everything is included; appliances, bedding, etc.

Since we're not bringing in another realtor, we're going to offer 2.5% less than the list price, plus another 5k for the furnishings. We know that's on the low side, but hopefully they'll counter and we can meet somewhere in the middle.

I think that’s fine but prepare to lose it if it’s a popular listing. I had one interested buyer (she even wrote me a letter) offer list including the furnishings and it was turned down immediately, no counter. I already had several interested parties offering over ask plus money for furnishings. I know this isn’t the case for every house, but I felt insulted (especially since she was asking for all of my personal artwork…she even asked for one of my Chanel purses displayed in my closet for her daughter - weird). It does get personal sometimes and she took a risk. I guess you’re in a different situation since this is a rental so probably not a whole lot of personal type items.

In my experience, often cottages sell with all the furnishings and appliances because the sellers no longer need them - either they're selling a rental home, or they're selling a cottage and would have nowhere to take all the extra stuff (and/or moving furniture in and out of a cottage location is a pain). It's good that you like all of the furnishings; I made an offer on a cottage once on the provision that he get rid of everything because I didn't want it. I'm sure he was insulted, and I didn't get the house ;) (It had been on and off the market for years, so I figured he might be getting desperate to sell. It took him another year and a bunch of renovations before he sold it.)

@K R, correct - no personal items. The house isn't listed, yet. They were preparing list it this week once they had professional photos taken. We went ahead and submitted our offer and should hear back by tomorrow. We can go either way. It's just a second home and we're in no hurry.

You may want to word the contract as just for the house, the real property, and have a separate contract for the personal property. The sales price will affect future RE appraisals in the area, and best to not artificially inflate it.

We recently sold our second home and offered the furniture to be sold. We provided the buyer with an itemized list with prices he could negotiate, take or leave. It worked well and he took almost everything. Good luck with your move and purchase.🤙🏽

I can't get past the wanting furniture used in a house that was an AirBnB ---- like...a hotel. NO FREAKIN' WAY if any of the pieces are upholstered....

Lol, I hear ya'. We'll be putting mattress toppers on the beds. And don't you sit on other people's upholstery? Just like a hotel room, I sanitize everything I can when purchasing a home.

I should add, we're considering renting it out in the winter months for added income. Our personal things, like linens, bedding, and mattress toppers can be locked away. Just a thought. It might be more trouble than it's worth. Does anyone else have experience with this?

The convenience of not having to go out and buy everything to furnish this place is huge. We just finished renovating and remodeling our home here after 5 years. I'm done renovating, remodeling, and furnishing. I just want to go and enjoy summers at our new place near the lake. Plus this home we're buying was tastefully done with high quality furnishings by an interior designer. It's so worth it to me. Here are some pics. Maybe I'll change or add an accessory or two, but that's it! Lol

A couple more...

Beautiful!

Amazing. They have great taste -- I love their style. I hope they accept your offer. No matter how much they spent on it, if they're left trying to sell it, they'll be lucky to get 10% of what they paid. There's also the huge headache of meeting buyers at the house for each item. It's win-win for them if they sell it all to you.

Congrats! I totally get wanting the furniture if it fits the house and is in good condition. It saves time, especially for a second home where you cannot be present to receive new furniture.

I have sold my house and my furniture, but separately. Don't fold the furniture price into the sale. The real estate agent has nothing to do with that transaction and should not be getting her 5% on it.

I think you are getting a very fair deal. Looking at the photos there is no way you could replace those pieces for $31,000.00. If you decided to rent, use the furniture sales slip for your tax return. It will qualify because you have spent the money to furnish a rental.

Yes as stated above - purchase furnishings separately, not included in the price of the property. If it's included in the price of the property the agent gets commission on the furnishings and the price of the property is inaccurately inflated. That of course is not in the agents best interests and she may balk at the idea.

The property and the house are real estate. Any contents are personal property. These sales are entirely different legal designations. There should be separate negotiations and separate sales contracts. If there is a lender involved, the contents cannot be included and will not be part of the appraisal. If you want to rent it out, the cost of the furnishings will be deductible and depreciable. A separate set of contracts will assist in setting it up for rental. Your tax accountant should be consulted in order to start things off properly.

If you do decide to buy the furnishings, make certain that you have an itemized inventory down to the number of spoons and lightbulbs. This keeps everyone honest, makes the IRS happy and no one has hurt feelings.

@homechef59 Yes, we negotiated for the furnishings separately. Not sure we want to rent the house at all, but if we do, that's good advice. We'll discuss everything with our accountant. We'll actually see the house tomorrow in person. I hope it's everything we think it is!

How did you like it?

@olychick, we love it, especially being that it's turn key. We're under contract now, in the inspection period. Since we'll be spending up to 5 months a year there, we've decided we don't want to rent it out. I'm sure I'll be posting next year asking for gardening advice because we're used to desert landscaping. I know nothing about grass and plants in this zone.