What is the exam-ready distinction?
| Official syllabus topic | Property Ownership: Classes of Property; Fixtures and Trade Fixtures |
|---|---|
| Official PSI area | Property Ownership |
| Published weight | 10% of the 100-question national portion |
| Source edition | PSI Georgia Candidate Information Bulletin dated July 1, 2026 |
The Rule
PSI publishes a weight for the complete official area, not a guaranteed count for this individual comparison. Use the source, document, actor, event, and timing stated in the question before applying a memorized definition.
Side-by-side comparison
Read across each row. The terms are deliberately compared on identical dimensions so the difference remains clear when the exam hides the vocabulary inside a scenario.
| Decision dimension | Fixture | Trade fixture | Personal property |
|---|---|---|---|
| What it is | Former personal property treated as part of the real estate | Tenant-installed item used in a trade or business | Movable item that remains separate from the land |
| Main test | Attachment, adaptation, intent, and agreement | Business use, tenant ownership, lease terms, timely removal, and repair | No annexation or agreement converting it to realty |
| Typical transfer | Usually passes with the deed unless excluded | Usually removable by the tenant within the lawful lease period | Transferred by bill of sale or other personal-property method |
| Classic example | Built-in kitchen cabinets | A tenant restaurant's removable commercial oven | A freestanding table |
Decision rule
Georgia-specific distinction
Worked example
Scenario. A salon tenant bolts styling stations to the floor for business use and removes them before the lease ends, repairing the holes.
Reason it through. The tenant installed the items for its business, removed them timely, and repaired the premises. Those facts point to trade fixtures rather than landlord-owned fixtures.
Answer. Treat the stations as removable trade fixtures unless the lease says otherwise.
Common exam traps
- Treating attachment as the only test
- Assuming every tenant installation is a trade fixture
- Ignoring the lease
- Removing a trade fixture after the lawful deadline
Original practice questions with detailed explanations
These are original instructional questions mapped to the July 1, 2026 PSI outline. They are not copied from PSI or any live examination. Choose an answer before opening the explanation.
Question 1A bakery tenant bolts two commercial ovens to the floor. The lease does not address removal. Before the lease ends, the tenant removes the ovens and repairs the floor. How are the ovens best classified?
- A. Trade fixtures the tenant could remove
- B. Fixtures that became the landlord's property
- C. Personal property that never touched the realty
- D. Abandoned property that belongs to the landlord
Show answer and explanation →
Answer: A. Trade fixtures the tenant could remove
A trade fixture is installed by a tenant for business use and is generally removable if removal is timely and the damage is repaired. The tenant did both, so the ovens were trade fixtures. Treating bolting alone as decisive is the trap: attachment is only one part of the test.
Question 2A homeowner installs a wall oven custom-fitted into the kitchen cabinets. The sales contract says nothing about it. What is the oven's status at closing?
- A. Personal property the seller may take
- B. A trade fixture the seller may remove
- C. A fixture that passes to the buyer with the home
- D. Personal property that passes only by bill of sale
Show answer and explanation →
Answer: C. A fixture that passes to the buyer with the home
The owner attached and adapted the oven to the house, which shows intent to make it part of the real estate, so it is a fixture that passes with the deed unless excluded. Trade fixture status belongs to a tenant's business equipment, not an owner's kitchen improvement. The plausible error is calling any appliance personal property.
Question 3A Georgia seller wants to keep a chandelier that is wired into the dining room ceiling. What should the listing licensee do?
- A. Assure the seller that light fixtures stay with the seller
- B. Make sure the sales contract expressly excludes the chandelier
- C. Tell buyers at showings that the chandelier is personal property
- D. Let the closing attorney settle ownership after closing
Show answer and explanation →
Answer: B. Make sure the sales contract expressly excludes the chandelier
A wired-in chandelier is likely a fixture that would pass with the deed, but the written agreement can exclude it. In Georgia the contract and actual intent decide disputed items, so the licensee should get the exclusion in writing rather than promise an outcome. Oral assurances to either party invite a dispute the contract could have prevented.
Ready to move on?
You have this distinction down when all of these are true.
- Define every compared term without using the other term as the definition.
- Rebuild the comparison table from memory.
- State the decision rule and Georgia distinction without notes.
- Solve the worked example after changing one key fact.
- Explain the rule or fact that makes each distractor wrong.
- Answer all three original questions correctly in mixed practice on a later day.
Recommended next lesson
Continue with Real Property Versus Personal Property. Trade fixtures are one piece of a bigger picture, and Real Property Versus Personal Property steps back to show how annexation turns a chattel into realty and how severance turns part of the land back into personal property.
Return to the complete exam-concept library or the Property Ownership hub.