Personal Property

What Is Personal Property? 

Personal property refers to any possession not permanently fixed to a particular location, including things like furniture, jewelry, electronics, automobiles, etc. 

Deeper Definition.

Everything a person owns that is not permanently fixed to a particular location qualifies as personal property. Personal property is any moveable possession, and it is a class of property that includes any asset other than real estate.

Personal property is not limited to individuals alone. A business, like a person, can have personal property. The types of property that a company owns are slightly different from that of a person, and they include manufacturing equipment, office furniture, computers, and everything moveable.

There are two ways to classify personal property. They are:

• Intangible personal property: An Intangible personal property is any possession that cannot be touched or felt but still represents something of value. Examples are stocks, bonds, and intellectual property such as patents and copyrights.

• Tangible personal property: These represent any physical possession that can be touched, felt, or moved. Examples include boats, furniture, clothing, jewelry, and art.

You may use personal property to secure some loans. For instance, when you take a car loan, your vehicle serves as security. However,  many lenders do not accept them because of how easy you can move them and how their value depreciates over time. For instance, a financial institution would instead grant a loan with a house as security over a vehicle as security.

Personal Property Example

Personal property is any of your possession that you can move from a place to another. Even little things such as your brush, cup, pen, books, etc., count as personal property. Also, your financial assets and investments count. Things that do not suffice as personal property are lands and any structure integrated with or affixed to them, including buildings, dams, mines, crops, and roads.

Jane owns a car worth $50,000 and a boat worth $100,000. She bought these items herself for her own personal use. These items are considered her personal property.