You have sold the house, settlement is getting close, and then somebody asks the question no one thought to settle properly at the start.

Does the dishwasher stay? What about the curtains, the television bracket, the garden shed, the security cameras, the pot plants, the bore equipment or the expensive light fitting in the dining room?

These questions sound minor until a buyer arrives after settlement and discovers something they reasonably expected to receive has disappeared.

After more than two decades and more than 1,500 personal sales, I can tell you most arguments over what stays and what goes are avoidable. The problem is usually not dishonesty. It is two people making different assumptions about the same item. If an item matters to either the buyer or the seller, put it in the contract. Do not rely on what seems obvious.

This article is general information, not legal advice. Whether a particular item is a fixture or
a chattel can depend on how it is attached, why it is attached, the contract wording and the
surrounding circumstances. If an item is valuable or disputed, obtain advice before signing.

The simple rule of thumb: turn the house upside down

One of the simplest ways agents are taught to explain fixtures and chattels is this. If you could turn the house upside down and shake it, whatever falls out is generally a chattel. Whatever stays attached is generally a fixture.

That is not the complete legal test, but it is a useful starting point. As a general rule, an item that is screwed, nailed, glued, concreted or otherwise permanently fixed to the home or land will usually be treated as a fixture, and things planted in the ground ordinarily remain with the land. An item that is free-standing and easily movable will usually be a chattel.

The trouble is the grey area. A dishwasher can be connected to plumbing and power but still be removable. A large shed can look permanent without being fixed to a slab. Curtains are removable, while their tracks are fixed. A television is movable, while its wall bracket may stay. That is why the rule of thumb helps, but the contract is what removes the doubt.

Fixtures usually stay; chattels usually go

WA Consumer Protection describes chattels as movable items that are not part of the land
or building, and fixtures as items fixed to or forming part of the property. Its guidance is that fixtures generally remain while chattels are removed, unless the contract says otherwise.

Common fixtures include fixed floor coverings, light fittings, built-in air conditioning, fixed mirrors, television aerials, permanently installed sheds and plants growing in the ground. Common chattels include rugs, free-standing furniture, removable appliances, pot plants and other loose items.

Those are only examples. The classification of a particular item can still depend on its method and purpose of attachment, which is exactly why the safest practice is to list any uncertain item clearly in the Offer and Acceptance.

What we put in every contract

To remove the most common arguments, every Offer and Acceptance we prepare includes wording to the effect that the offer includes all fixed floor coverings, window treatments, light fittings and the dishwasher in place.

If the seller wants to keep one of those, it is excluded in writing before the buyer signs. If the buyer expects an unusual movable item, it is included in writing. For a valuable appliance, the brand and model can be recorded too. Those few words save a lot of misunderstanding at settlement.

The contract beats the assumption

A seller can generally exclude an item that might otherwise stay, provided the exclusion is clear and accepted as part of the contract. A buyer can also negotiate for a movable item to be included. For example:

• Included in the sale: Bosch free-standing dishwasher, model ABC123.
• Excluded from the sale: dining-room pendant light. The seller will remove it before settlement and install a standard working light fitting in its place.

The more valuable or unusual the item, the more specific the wording should be.

The items that cause the most confusion

Dishwashers.

A fully integrated unit can look like part of the kitchen, while a free-standing one is easy to remove. WA guidance specifically identifies dishwashers as items to list, and our contracts include the dishwasher in place unless agreed otherwise.

Curtains, blinds and window treatments.

Tracks, rods and fitted blinds are attached to the building. Curtains themselves can usually be removed. Because expectations differ, our standard wording includes window treatments unless the contract states otherwise.

Televisions and wall brackets.

The television normally belongs to the seller unless expressly included. A fixed bracket may remain, and if it is being removed, agree what happens to any holes or damage.

Sheds, cubby houses, aviaries and animal enclosures.

This matters throughout the Perth Hills and Foothills. Some structures are concreted or fixed, others can be moved. If it appears in the marketing and matters to either side, identify it in the contract.

Solar panels, batteries and EV chargers.

Roof-mounted panels and permanently installed equipment ordinarily appear to form part of the property. The contract should also deal with any finance, lease, service agreement, cables, adaptors and account transfers.

Pool equipment.

Fixed pumps, filters and heating are different from loose cleaners, covers, rollers and accessories. List the removable equipment if the buyer expects to receive it.

Everything else follows the same logic, so record it rather than guess: fixed mirrors and
hung mirrors, sentimental light fittings, security cameras and smart-home hubs (including
the codes and accounts needed to run them), outdoor kitchens and pizza ovens, workshop
benches, statues, water features and established plants. If it matters to either side, one line
in the contract settles it.

A story from my first year in real estate

One of my earliest sales was a home in the Kelmscott hills. The sellers had come from England, and everything went smoothly through the contract and final inspection.

The property settled. Not long afterwards the buyer rang me and said, “Brendan, you had better come up here and have a look.”

When I arrived I could hardly believe it. The sellers had removed the carpets, curtains, blinds and light fittings. The home had been stripped back.

I called the seller and asked what had happened. His answer was completely genuine: “What do you mean? That is what we do in England.”

He honestly believed he had done the right thing. I had to explain that this was Western Australia, and more importantly, the contract specifically included the fixed floor coverings, window treatments and light fittings. They had to be returned and properly reinstalled.

Fortunately the buyer was easy-going and could see the funny side once it was explained. The sellers arranged for the items to be put back by qualified people, and it was resolved. The lesson was not that anybody was dishonest. It was that assumptions change from country to country, and person to person, and the contract is there to make the expectation clear.

A much more expensive lesson about internet advice

A later sale was not so easy.

The seller had a stove and oven that formed part of the property and were included in the sale. We explained repeatedly that they were fixtures under the contract and could not simply be removed.

By that stage, though, the seller had started relying on advice from online forums. It did not seem to matter what the agent or the other professionals said. She had found people online telling her what she believed she was entitled to do, and she made up her own mind.

When the buyer’s building inspector attended and took his normal photographs, the report showed the stove and oven had been dismantled and left in pieces, with the gas connection cut. The matter had to move into the legal channel before settlement. The appliances had to be reinstated properly, and the delayed settlement exposed the seller to default interest under the contract.

That is where it gets expensive. On a seven-figure sale, with an outstanding balance well over a million dollars, default interest adds up fast. The 2022 Joint Form sets default interest at 9 per cent a year, calculated daily, though the form is updated from time to time and the rate that applies should always be confirmed against the current contract. On an outstanding balance of around 1.3 million, 9 per cent works out to roughly 320 dollars a day. A delay of a couple of weeks can add several thousand dollars, before any legal and trade costs on top.

The lesson is not “never use the internet.” It is that general online advice does not know your signed contract, your property or the facts of your transaction. Licensed agents, settlement agents and property lawyers are not infallible, but they are dealing with the actual transaction in front of them. Where the agent, settlement agent and lawyer are all telling you the same thing, an anonymous online opinion should not override the contract you signed.

Advertising photographs do not decide what is included

Buyers sometimes assume everything in the marketing photographs will remain. That is unsafe. Photographs normally show furniture, artwork, rugs, lamps, outdoor furniture, pot plants and decorative items that belong to the seller.

Marketing photographs do not, by themselves, reliably establish what is included in the sale. The contract is what identifies inclusions and exclusions. At the same time, advertising must still accurately represent the property and should not create a misleading impression about a significant feature that will be removed. If a major feature shown in the campaign is going to be removed, the safest approach is to declare it before offers are made.

What sellers should do before launching

Before photography and home opens, walk through the property with your agent and identify anything you intend to take that a buyer may reasonably think belongs to the property: sentimental light fittings, curtains and custom window treatments, dishwashers and appliances, wall-mounted televisions and brackets, security and smart-home equipment, sheds and enclosures, pool equipment, workshop benches, EV charging equipment, statues, water features and established plants.

Where practical, remove or replace the item before the photography. That is cleaner than presenting the home with an attractive feature and announcing later that the buyer does not receive it.

What buyers should do before making an offer

During the inspection, ask one question: what do I expect to still be here when I receive the
keys? If something matters, tell the agent before the offer is written. A verbal conversation is not a substitute for clear contract wording. Pay particular attention to window treatments, the dishwasher and appliances, TV brackets and fixed mirrors, security and smart-home equipment, sheds and outdoor structures, pool equipment, bore, rainwater and reticulation equipment, solar and EV charging, and any valuable plants or garden features.

Keys, garage remotes and access devices must be handed over

The sale is not complete in a practical sense if the buyer receives the house but cannot properly access or operate it. The Joint Form of General Conditions deals with the handover of keys and relevant remotes or access devices, and “access device” is defined to include keys, security devices and the codes for any security system. Sellers should collect and hand over everything reasonably required to enter and use the property, subject to the
exact contract terms: front, rear and side-door keys, security-screen keys, mailbox keys, shed and workshop keys, garage-door and gate remotes, and alarm fobs, access cards and relevant codes.

Brendan’s tip for sellers: create a settlement box

As soon as the property goes under offer, start a small box or drawer for everything that needs to stay with the home: all keys and labelled spares, garage and gate remotes, alarm fobs and access cards, instruction manuals, warranties and service records, smart-home reset or transfer instructions, spare remote batteries, and any agreed equipment or accessories. By settlement day everything is in one place, and there is no frantic search through packed boxes.

Brendan’s tip for buyers: change the locks after settlement

This is not a legal requirement, but I recommend it to almost every buyer. Once the property has settled, consider having a locksmith re-key the external locks. The first reason is convenience. Older homes often have a different key for every door, and a locksmith can frequently change the barrels so one or two keys operate the whole home. The second is security. You do not know how many copies of the old keys exist, or who may still have one. Previous owners may have given keys to relatives, neighbours, tradespeople, cleaners or house sitters over many years. Re-keying means you know exactly who can access your new home. As a rough guide it is commonly around 300 to 600 dollars depending on the number and type of locks, so get a current locksmith quote rather than treating that as fixed pricing.

What happens if something disappears before settlement?

The final inspection is your chance to check the property remains in the required condition and the seller has complied with the contract. If something is missing:

1. Record exactly what is missing or altered.
2. Take photographs where appropriate.
3. Do not argue at the property.
4. Notify the settlement agent and selling agent in writing.
5. Let the settlement agents deal with it under the contract.

Depending on the item and the contract, the solution might be its return, replacement, repair of removal damage, an agreed settlement adjustment or legal advice. A missing item does not automatically entitle a buyer to cancel settlement. The contract and the seriousness of the breach matter.

Five practical things to do on settlement day

1. Confirm all keys, remotes, fobs and access codes have been received.
2. Walk through the home and confirm the agreed inclusions are present.
3. Photograph the electricity, gas and water meter readings for your records.
4. Confirm utility and internet arrangements.
5. Book a locksmith to re-key the external locks.

Frequently asked questions

Does the dishwasher stay when you sell a house in WA?

It depends on the contract. WA guidance specifically flags dishwashers as items to list, because an integrated unit can look built-in while a free-standing one is easy to remove. Our contracts include the dishwasher in place unless it is expressly excluded, so the safest thing is to have it written in either way.

Do curtains and blinds stay when you sell in WA?

Curtain tracks, rods and fitted window treatments may appear to form part of the property, while curtains and some blinds can be readily removed. WA Consumer Protection actually lists curtains and blinds among its examples of chattels, and recommends identifying window fittings in the contract because expectations can differ. Our contracts include window treatments unless they are expressly excluded, which removes the argument before it starts.

Can a seller remove fixtures before settlement?

A seller can keep an item that might otherwise stay only if it is clearly excluded in the contract and accepted before the buyer signs. Removing a fixture that the contract includes is a breach, and it can lead to reinstatement, an adjustment, delayed settlement and default interest.

What is the difference between a fixture and a chattel?

A fixture is attached to or forms part of the property and generally stays. A chattel is a movable item that is not part of the land or building and generally goes. The rule of thumb: shake the house, what falls out is usually a chattel, what stays attached is usually a fixture. The contract settles anything uncertain.

The bottom line

The legal difference between a fixture and a chattel matters. But the best transaction is not the one where somebody wins an argument about it after settlement. It is the one where the argument never happens.

If the seller wants to keep it, exclude it in writing. If the buyer expects to receive it, include it in writing. One extra line in the Offer and Acceptance can save days of stress, damaged goodwill, trade costs, default interest and legal expense over an item worth a fraction of the property itself.

After more than 1,500 personal sales, my advice is simple: never assume the other side sees an item the same way you do. Put it in the contract.

If you are buying or selling in the Perth Hills or Foothills and want the process explained in plain English before you sign, get in touch.

To help you, please feel free to download our property sale checklist

Truth. Strategy. Sold.

About the author: Brendan Leahy has been selling homes across the Perth Hills and
Foothills since 2002, with more than 1,500 personal sales.

This article is general information only and is not legal advice. The classification of an item
and the remedies available may depend on the method and purpose of attachment, the
contract wording and the particular circumstances. Speak with your settlement agent or
property lawyer if an item is valuable, disputed or unclear