Chattels Schedule Value Calculator NZ

Updated  This values chattels for insurance and negotiation. For rental property tax deductions, use the depreciation calculators.
Quick answer The chattels on a typical New Zealand sale and purchase agreement cost $24,100.00 to replace new, which is the figure insurance has to cover. What they are actually worth at their current age is $11,360.00, which is 47.1% of that. The gap of $12,740.00 is why an argument about a failed appliance is never about the price of a new one.

The chattels schedule is the part of a sale and purchase agreement that everyone signs and nobody reads, right up until something on it stops working. Then it matters a great deal, and the argument that follows is usually conducted in the wrong currency. A buyer who finds a dead dishwasher at the pre-settlement inspection thinks in terms of what a new dishwasher costs; a vendor thinks in terms of what a nine year old dishwasher was worth, which is very little. Both numbers are real and they are used for different things. Replacement cost is what insurance needs to cover, because a policy has to put things back. Present worth is what a negotiation is actually about, because nobody is entitled to be handed a newer appliance than the one they agreed to buy.

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The schedule

Work from the schedule on your own agreement. Set any item you do not have to zero, and change the expected life where you know better than the default.

ItemCost to replace newAge, yearsExpected life, yearsWorth now
Oven and cooktop$1,166.67
Rangehood$373.33
Dishwasher$700.00
Fixed floor coverings$4,500.00
Curtains and blinds$1,500.00
Heat pump$2,100.00
Light fittings$600.00
Garage door opener$420.00
Total$24,100.00$11,360.00
Replacement cost
$24,100.00
the number insurance has to cover
Worth now
$11,360.00
47.1% of replacement cost
The gap
$12,740.00
what depreciation has already taken

The two numbers and what each is for

FigureAmountUsed for
Replacement cost$24,100.00Insurance. A policy has to be able to put things back, so the sum insured needs to reflect what new items cost
Present worth$11,360.00Negotiation. If an item fails before settlement, this is what is genuinely at stake rather than the price of a new one
Difference$12,740.00The distance between the two positions in any argument about chattels

The oldest item on this schedule is the curtains and blinds at 10 years against an expected life of 15, so 33.3% of their value remains.

Against the sale price

Sale price$850,000.00
Chattels at replacement cost2.84% of the price
Chattels at present worth1.34% of the price

Chattels are a small fraction of a house purchase and a disproportionate share of the disputes, because they are the only part of the transaction a buyer can inspect and test on the day.

Sale price, for context
This is a valuation aid, not a tax calculation and not a valuation for any formal purpose. It uses straight line depreciation over the expected life you enter, with a floor of ten per cent of replacement cost so nothing falls to zero while it is still working, which is a reasonable convention rather than a standard. For rental property tax deductions use Inland Revenue's depreciation rates and the depreciation calculators, because those follow different rules and produce different numbers. What a vendor is obliged to deliver, and what happens if an item has failed, are matters for the sale and purchase agreement and for your solicitor. Insurance cover depends on your policy, and sums insured should be discussed with your insurer rather than derived from this page.

If it is not on the schedule, it is not included

The single most useful thing to know about chattels is that the list governs. Verbal assurances at an open home are worth nothing, and items a buyer assumed were included because they were there during the viewing can lawfully be removed if the schedule does not name them. That cuts both ways: vendors who intend to take a particular light fitting or a set of drapes need it excluded in writing rather than relying on it being obviously personal. Checking the schedule against what you actually saw is a five minute job that prevents most chattels disputes entirely.

Two numbers, two arguments

Confusing replacement cost with present worth is what makes chattels negotiations go badly. A buyer arriving at a pre-settlement inspection with a quote for a new appliance is asking for something they never bought, since what they agreed to purchase was a used one of a particular age. A vendor insisting an item is worth almost nothing because it is old is ignoring that the buyer now has to spend real money to have a working kitchen. The honest middle is the present worth, and having the number in advance turns a disagreement about principle into a discussion about a figure.

Fair wear and tear is the vendor's defence and the buyer's limit

A vendor is generally required to hand over the chattels in the condition they were in when the agreement was signed, allowing for fair wear and tear in the intervening weeks. That is a narrow window and a low bar. An appliance that was working at signing and is not working at settlement is a legitimate issue. One that was already tired and has become slightly more tired is not. Where an issue is legitimate, the adjustment is normally negotiated at settlement rather than resolved by replacing the item, which is another reason the present worth is the number that ends up mattering.

Worked example

A typical schedule lists an oven and cooktop, rangehood, dishwasher, fixed floor coverings, curtains and blinds, a heat pump, light fittings and a garage door opener. Replacing all of them new would cost $24,100.00.

At their current ages they are worth $11,360.00, which is 47.1% of replacement cost, so depreciation has already taken $12,740.00 of value. The dishwasher, five years into an expected ten year life, is worth $700.00 against $1,400.00 new.

Against a sale price of $850,000.00 the chattels are 2.84% of the transaction at replacement cost and 1.34% at what they are actually worth.

How this is calculated

Each item is depreciated on a straight line from its replacement cost over the expected life you give it, so an item halfway through its life is worth half of what it would cost new. A floor of ten per cent of replacement cost applies, so an item past its expected life still carries some value rather than falling to nothing while it continues to work. The totals are the sums of the individual items, and the proportion remaining is present worth divided by replacement cost. This is ordinary straight line depreciation for valuation purposes and is unrelated to Inland Revenue depreciation rates, which use different methods and rates and exist to calculate a tax deduction rather than a value.

Official sources

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Frequently asked questions

What are chattels in a house sale?

Chattels are the movable items included in the sale, as distinct from fixtures which are part of the property itself. The sale and purchase agreement carries a schedule listing them, typically covering things like the stove, rangehood, dishwasher, fixed floor coverings, curtains and blinds, light fittings, heat pumps and a garage door opener. If an item is not on the schedule it is not included, whatever anyone said at the open home.

Is this the same as chattels depreciation for tax?

No, and the difference matters. Tax depreciation on chattels applies to rental property and follows Inland Revenue rates and rules for calculating a deduction. This page is about what the items on a sale and purchase agreement are actually worth, for insurance and for negotiation, and uses ordinary straight line depreciation over an expected life rather than any tax schedule. If you need the tax figures, use the depreciation calculators instead.

What happens if a chattel breaks before settlement?

The vendor is generally obliged to deliver the chattels in the same condition they were in when the agreement was signed, fair wear and tear excepted. If something has failed, the usual outcome is a negotiated adjustment at settlement rather than a new appliance, and the amount in dispute is the item's present worth rather than the cost of replacing it new. That is exactly the figure this calculator produces.

Should I insure for replacement cost or present worth?

Replacement cost, because that is what it takes to put things right after a loss, and most house policies work on that basis for contents of this kind. Present worth is the wrong number for insurance and the right number for a negotiation, which is why this page shows both. Insuring on present worth would leave you unable to replace anything.

How closely should I check the chattels at the pre-settlement inspection?

Item by item against the schedule, and switch each one on. The pre-settlement inspection is the last opportunity to raise anything, and once you have settled your position is considerably weaker. Working down the schedule with the agreement in hand takes a few minutes and is the only time the list is worth anything to you.