Personal Property in California

[jktrading]

Just wondering if I have 2 TV's, valued at maybe $800 and $1500 resale value, those are approximations, do I need to sell them and get 2 TV's under $525, since it says household items to $525 per each item? And/or, can I use them in the personal property exemption, which I believe is $20,175 total?

They're 2 year old plasma and LCD screened TV's which are more normal now, but probably not under $525 each in the household items category. And, I think can still be classified as luxury items. Although, I don't think they sell that many old type of CRT sets anymore? So maybe they're "normal" now?

Also, if I cannot include them in the personal property exemption, what kind of personal property are they referring to? Plus, these are all resale value, which is obviously a lower number than retail, correct?

[HHM]

1. The TV sets are personal property.

2. Personally, I think you are over-valuing those 2 sets.

Remember, the value you assign to personal property is "garage sale" or "craigslist" value. Unless those are 70"+ sets, only a sucker would "actually" pay that much for a used LCD or Plasma screen.

[jktrading]

That's good news to hear. I wasn't sure because of how they listed household goods in a separate exemption category, and said something about what is normal for all families, or some other similar verbage.

Anyway, yes, my estimates could be off for the two 2 year old used sets, but they were top of the line at the time. A 40" sony lcd was $2799, and the 42" panasonic plasma was $2000 back in 2006. Of course, like cars, their values depreciate very quickly. Probably especially since all warranties have run out.

I wonder on the person property deduction, if you would take the $525 per household item, and deduct the difference from whatever the current "used" value is per item? Do people/creditors have some list that they go by? Or, maybe search eBay's completed auctions list, or something similar? I know you mentioned a garage sale or craig's list.

[CindyLou]

i filed in Central District of California and listed my household goods in general categories such as "electronics" "shoes, clothing, personal items", and "furniture"....


I then just listed a general guess of the total value of what everything would sell for if I had a yard sale. I did not list individual items and there were no questions asked.