Purchase or Sale of a Property

Why is the purchase or sale of a real estate property so complicated?

Taxes, financing considerations, and other factors affect the transactions involving such items as cars and boats. Under the law, however, these items are considered personal property as distinguished from real estate, also known as real property. Personal property and real estate have different characteristics and, as a general rule, the law treats each type of property differently in Key West.

Personal property is usually easily moved and, in many cases, is owned for a relatively short period of time. Possession of personal property also is a strong indicator of ownership. With real estate, on the other hand, the property cannot be moved and possession does not necessarily mean ownership. To illustrate, unless property is fenced in, it may be difficult to distinguish a neighbor's property from your own. And, while you may own real estate, you may not have possession of it, if, for example, you are renting the property to someone else.

Other factors that distinguish real estate from personal property are: many different people can have an interest in the same real property; foreclosing on real property is much more difficult than repossessing a car; and real estate is taxed differently than personal property.