# What's the legal term for personal effects?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-legal-term-for-personal-effects/357380>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [May 19, 2006, 6:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-legal-term-for-personal-effects/357380 "2006-05-19T06:05:17Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 5\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![Sampiro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/2acd7d/32.png) [@Sampiro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sampiro)\
**Post date:** [May 19, 2006, 6:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-legal-term-for-personal-effects/357380/1 "2006-05-19T06:05:17Z")

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Or is it personal effects? I’m referring to things like furniture, plates, computers, CDs, etc., that have some value but that you wouldn’t usually list as assets, but may in a will or on an insurance policy. Personal property is I believe more tightly described, but I can’t think of this term.

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**Author:** ![waterj2](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/858c86/32.png) [@waterj2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/waterj2)\
**Post date:** [May 19, 2006, 7:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-legal-term-for-personal-effects/357380/2 "2006-05-19T07:04:28Z")

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I think [chattel](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chattel) may be the term you are are looking for.

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**Author:** ![PBear42](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ecccb3/32.png) [@PBear42](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PBear42)\
**Post date:** [May 19, 2006, 3:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-legal-term-for-personal-effects/357380/3 "2006-05-19T15:52:37Z")

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How about “stuff”? Seriously, maybe there’s some context that’s not coming to mind, but for purposes of wills and contracts, any of “personal property,” “personal effects,” “chattel” or “stuff” will work. IOW, sometimes legalese requires magic words, but not often and (subject to that caveat) not here.

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**Author:** ![Diceman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/22d042/32.png) [@Diceman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diceman)\
**Post date:** [May 19, 2006, 4:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-legal-term-for-personal-effects/357380/4 "2006-05-19T16:41:06Z")

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I think it’s just personal property. Your house and the land it sits on are “real property,” and everything else is personal property.

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**Author:** ![Opus1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/858c86/32.png) [@Opus1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Opus1)\
**Post date:** [May 19, 2006, 6:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-legal-term-for-personal-effects/357380/5 "2006-05-19T18:47:47Z")

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[QUOTE=Diceman]  
I think it’s just personal property. Your house and the land it sits on are “real property,” and everything else is personal property.  
[/QUOTE]

Just as real property is often called realty, personal property can go by the name of personalty amongst legal types.