What stays with the house when you sell in Arizona? Under the Arizona REALTORS® Residential Resale Real Estate Purchase Contract (current version updated February 2026), every existing fixture stays, which the form defines as property attached or affixed to the home, along with the means to operate it, such as remote controls. Window coverings, light fixtures, TV brackets and built-in appliances are all on that list.
What can you take? Your personal property, and in fact you must. The contract requires sellers to remove personal property not included in the sale, plus debris, by the earlier of possession or close of escrow. If there's a chandelier, a mounted TV or a pool robot you want to keep, the time to say so is before a buyer makes an offer, in writing.
Data note: Contract language is from the Arizona REALTORS® sample resale purchase contract (February 2026). These are the form's defaults; buyers and sellers can agree to different terms. This is general information, not legal advice.
The Rule: Attached Stays
The contract conveys "all existing: fixtures on the Premises, personal property specified herein, and means to operate fixtures and property." In practice:
- Bolted, wired, plumbed or mounted items are generally treated as fixtures
- Remotes, openers and app access go with the items they control
- Free-standing furniture and décor are personal property and leave with you
Item by Item: What Sellers Ask Most
Window Coverings
- Draperies and other window coverings convey
- So do towel, curtain and drapery rods, shutters and awnings, and window and door screens and sun shades
Mounted TVs and Audio
- Wall-mounted TV brackets and hardware stay; the TVs are excluded
- Flush-mounted speakers stay
Solar
- Affixed alternate power systems (i.e., solar) convey if owned by the seller
- Leased items don't convey. Sellers must disclose leased items within three days of acceptance, and the form lists a Solar Addendum among its optional addenda
- If your panels are leased or financed, ask your solar company early about transfer requirements
Pool and Spa
- In-ground pool and spa equipment and covers, including cleaning systems, convey if owned
- An above-ground spa conveys only if checked as personal property
Appliances
- Built-in appliances and a free-standing range/oven convey
- Refrigerator, washer and dryer convey only if checked, and then with no monetary value
Smart Home and Outdoor
- Smart home devices such as video doorbells and thermostats stay, with access transferred
- Fountains, outdoor lighting, misting systems, storage sheds and unpotted plants and trees stay
How to Exclude an Item
- Swap before you list. Replacing a family chandelier with a fixture you're happy to leave avoids the conversation entirely
- Disclose up front. Flag exclusions in the listing so buyers price their offers with the facts
- Put it in the contract. The AAR form has no exclusions checkbox; exclusions are usually written into the Additional Terms and Conditions section or a counteroffer. Your agent or attorney should draft the wording
- Verbal deals don't count. The contract's Entire Agreement clause says it can be modified only by a writing signed by buyer and seller
What to Leave vs. What to Take
Leave
- Keys and means to operate all locks, the mailbox, the security system and common area facilities, which the contract requires at possession
- Remotes, garage openers and smart-device access
- As a courtesy: appliance manuals, warranty paperwork and labeled touch-up paint
Take
- All personal property not included in the sale, and debris, by possession or COE
- Leased equipment, per its lease terms, once disclosed
- Excluded items listed in the signed contract
The buyer's final walkthrough checks that the home is in substantially the same condition as at acceptance, so patch the TV-mount holes you created when removing an excluded TV, and leave time for a final sweep. For timing, see how long it takes to close in Arizona.
What Closing Costs Do Sellers Pay in Arizona?
Briefly, under the standard contract's defaults:
- Owner's title insurance policy: provided to the buyer at the seller's expense
- Escrow fees: split equally
- Property taxes and HOA assessments: prorated to closing
- Brokerage compensation: set by separate written agreement
- State transfer tax: none; Arizona's Constitution bars new taxes on real property transfers
Our full breakdown, with HOA transfer-fee limits and tax rules, is in How Much Does It Cost to Sell a House in Arizona?
“The contract is generous to buyers on fixtures, and most sellers don't realize the drapes, the TV mounts and the owned solar are already promised. I go room by room with my sellers before we list, so anything sentimental is swapped out or excluded in writing. In a luxury sale, a single light fixture can turn into a week of renegotiation.”
— Elizabeth Vijan, Tackett Team, eXp Realty
FAQ: What Stays When You Sell
What stays with the house when you sell in Arizona?
All existing fixtures, plus owned solar, pool equipment, security systems and water softeners.
Do mounted TVs stay with the house in Arizona?
The brackets and hardware stay; the TVs don't, under the standard form.
Does the refrigerator stay when you sell a house in Arizona?
Only if checked in the contract, along with the washer and dryer.
What closing costs do sellers pay in Arizona?
Typically the owner's title policy, half of escrow and prorated taxes and HOA dues.
Selling in Scottsdale or Phoenix?
I'll walk your home with you before we list, sort what stays from what goes and write any exclusions so they hold up through closing.
Elizabeth Vijan | Tackett Team, eXp Realty
Scottsdale & Phoenix Real Estate
Talk to Elizabeth About Selling · Call or text 602-885-7752
Sources: Arizona REALTORS®: Residential resale purchase contract, Feb. 2026 (PDF) · Arizona REALTORS®: Residential resale transaction forms · Arizona Constitution, Article IX, Section 24
Disclaimer: General information, not legal advice. Contract forms are updated periodically and individual contracts vary; ask your agent or an Arizona real estate attorney about your situation. Information deemed reliable but not guaranteed. Equal Housing Opportunity.
Tackett Team, eXp Realty · Get in touch