In Utah, the REPC decides what stays. Learn fixtures vs personal property, what the included-items list covers, and how to handle smart devices, fridges, and exclusions.
The wall mount is not the fight. The TV is.
In Utah, what stays with the house is mostly decided by one section of the state-approved purchase contract. If you leave it vague, you will negotiate it twice. Once when you accept the offer, and again when the buyer does the final walk-through and notices the fridge, the Ring cameras, or the shed is gone.
The Utah Real Estate Purchase Contract has an entire section that lists what is included in the sale unless you specifically exclude it. It is long on purpose. The current form covers fixtures, systems, appliances, window coverings, landscaping, garage openers, keys, and more. You can read the exact language in the Utah REPC form published by the Division of Real Estate.
Two rules drive the whole thing:
If you want to keep something that looks like it stays, you have to write it out. The form gives you a blank line for exclusions for a reason. “We talked about it” does not count.
This is one of those details to nail before you fuss over photos. Our Utah FSBO guide walks through the sequence, but the short version is that clarity in the REPC prevents most closing-week arguments.
Utah follows the same logic most states do. A fixture started as personal property and became part of the house because of how it is attached and used.
Ask these four questions:
That is why curtain rods usually stay (screwed in), but curtains might not unless the contract says window coverings are included. It is why the garage door opener stays, but your extra freezer in the garage might not unless you list it.
If you are sorting through the rest of your disclosures at the same time, use the utah-fsbo-seller-disclosure-checklist so you do not treat the REPC and the Seller Disclosures as two separate planets.
These are the five categories that cause FSBO headaches in Utah:
1. Refrigerators. The Utah REPC specifically includes refrigerators as part of the sale unless excluded. That surprises sellers who bought a nice French-door fridge two years ago and assumed it was theirs. If you want to take it, exclude it by brand or description. If you have two (kitchen plus garage), list which one stays.
2. TV mounts and TVs. Do not rely on a casual fixture test here. Check the included-items language in your signed REPC, then expressly include or exclude the mount and television. If you take either one, patching is not automatically required unless your contract says so. Best practice: leave the mount, or remove it before listing and patch and paint. Do not leave a bracket with no TV and a handful of wall anchors on walk-through day.
3. Smart devices. Doorbells, thermostats, locks, garage keypads, cameras, and speakers are where attachment gets messy. If it is wired or screwed in and controls a system, buyers will argue it stays. The REPC language already sweeps in many systems and attached devices, so spell it out. Example exclusion: “Nest thermostat in hallway to be replaced with basic programmable thermostat prior to closing. Ring doorbell camera excluded.” And then actually do the replacement before the final walk.
4. Sheds, playsets, and hot tubs. If a shed is on a foundation or bolted down, it looks like a fixture. If it is sitting on skids and can be moved with a trailer, buyers may still think it was included because it was in the photos. Hot tubs are often personal property if free-standing and not plumbed in, but again, if it appears in your MLS or flat-fee MLS photos, buyers assume it conveys. Exclude it in writing or remove it from photos and the property before showings.
5. Leased or financed equipment. Solar panels, water softeners, propane tanks, security systems. If you do not own it outright, it cannot be conveyed free and clear. The REPC has spots to disclose leased equipment and service contracts. If your water softener is rented, or your solar is on a PPA, you need to disclose the terms, and the buyer has to agree to assume it or you have to pay it off. Do not bury this in a side conversation. Put it in the contract and loop in your title company early. The piece on choosing a title company for a Utah FSBO sale explains why they want to see these documents sooner than you think.
Use this before you sign anything.
Inventory walk:
Writing it down:
One worked example:
Seller lists a Daybreak home with a Ring doorbell, two Ecobee thermostats, a TV mounted over the fireplace, and a Costco shed on gravel. She wants to keep the Ring and the kitchen fridge, leave the garage fridge, and leave the shed but not the hot tub under the deck. On the REPC she writes: “Exclusions: Ring doorbell at front entry, LG kitchen refrigerator, free-standing hot tub on back deck and cover. Shed 10x12 on gravel at rear of lot included. Wall mount for TV at living room included, TV excluded.” She also replaces the Ring with a standard doorbell before the final walk and leaves both Ecobees because she did not exclude them. Result: no last-minute credit request for a missing fridge or a security system.
If you end up in a multiple-offer situation, do not let included items become a bidding lever you ignore. Compare offers on price, terms, and what each buyer thinks they are getting. The guide to how to compare multiple FSBO offers in Utah has a simple matrix for that.
Next, do your own 15-minute fixture audit with the REPC in hand, write any exclusions with model info, and make your photos match. That one pass saves you from negotiating your refrigerator at 9 p.m. the night before funding.
This is general information, not legal advice. Utah real estate rules and forms change, so verify current requirements with the Utah Division of Real Estate or a Utah real estate attorney.