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You walk the house with the form, marking each item as included in the sale, excluded from it, or not at the property, and the completed form becomes part of the sale contract. As an executor the form itself is simple. The part that needs care is the order you do things in: beneficiaries first, clearance plan second, TA10 third. This guide explains why, and how to use the form to save the estate money.
The TA10 is the Fittings and Contents Form, part of the Law Society's suite of transaction forms used in residential sales in England and Wales. Where the TA6 describes the property itself, the TA10 describes what is physically in it and what the buyer will get.
It works through the house item by item: curtains and blinds, carpets, light fittings, kitchen and bathroom fittings, white goods (the fridge, freezer, washing machine and similar appliances), sheds, garden furniture and the rest. Against each one you tick a single answer — included in the sale, excluded from the sale, or none at the property — and note where in the house it is.
There is no trick to any individual answer. The form simply asks you to say, clearly and in writing, what stays and what goes, so that neither side is surprised on completion day.
On versions: the current form is the TA10 Fittings and contents form (3rd edition), published in 2013 and unchanged since. Unlike the TA6, which was reissued in a 6th edition in 2025, the TA10 has had no recent overhaul and there is no changeover date for you to worry about. Use the version your conveyancer supplies. If you have not read it yet, our companion guide to the TA6 form for executors covers the bigger of the two seller forms.
It is easy to treat the TA10 as an afterthought, a checklist about lampshades sandwiched between more serious paperwork. Resist that instinct, because the completed TA10 is normally attached to the contract and forms part of it on exchange — that is how the Law Society's Conveyancing Protocol expects it to be used.
That has two practical consequences:
The form must match reality on completion day
The single test the TA10 has to pass is this: on the day the buyer gets the keys, the house should contain exactly what the form says it contains. Nothing listed as included may be removed, and nothing described as gone may be left behind. If plans change after you have signed, tell your conveyancer straight away so the form can be updated before exchange.
For an ordinary seller, the contents of the house are theirs to promise. For you, they are not. The contents belong to the estate, and other people may have claims on them.
Before you complete the TA10, check two things:
Only once everyone has had their say do you know what is genuinely available to include in the sale. Getting this order right avoids the worst version of events: an item promised to the buyer on a signed TA10 that a grieving relative believed was theirs.
Most probate sales involve a house clearance at some point, whether done by family over several weekends or by a professional clearance firm. The TA10 and the clearance plan need to tell the same story.
If the house will be fully cleared before completion, the form is quick: most answers will be "none at the property", perhaps with carpets and light fittings included. If the clearance is partial, be precise about what will remain. Our guide to clearing a house after a death covers the clearance itself, including timing it around the sale.
A quiet opportunity to save the estate money
Buyers of probate properties quite often ask for items to be left: the white goods, the curtains and carpets, sometimes the garden shed and its contents. Saying yes can genuinely help both sides. The buyer furnishes a house cheaply, and the estate's clearance bill shrinks because there is less to remove. This is entirely negotiable. Agree it with the buyer through the agent or the solicitors, then make sure every item you have agreed to leave is recorded as included on the TA10.
The easiest way to complete the TA10 accurately is to do it in the house, not from memory at your kitchen table. Take the form, walk each room and mark items as you see them.
Once done, return the form to your conveyancer, who sends it to the buyer's solicitor alongside the TA6. Both forms usually go out together, and both feed into the contract your conveyancer prepares. For how the forms fit into the wider legal process, see our guide to conveyancing for a probate sale, or step back to the full journey in selling an inherited house.
A word on what things are worth, because it shapes the negotiation. There is no published figure for what house contents fetch second hand, and the realistic comparison is not the price a buyer offers but the cost of paying a clearance firm to remove the same items. If something looks genuinely valuable, have it valued before the sale — it is an estate asset and belongs in the estate accounts either way.
A handful of avoidable mistakes account for most TA10 trouble in probate sales. Watch for these.
Yes. The TA10 becomes part of the contract when contracts are exchanged. If an item listed as included is removed before completion, or if the buyer finds belongings left behind that the form said would be gone, the estate is in breach of contract and the buyer may claim compensation, such as the cost of clearing what was left.
Two things. First, check the will for items left to named people, and ask beneficiaries and close family what they want from the house. Second, settle the house clearance plan, because the form must describe what will actually be in the house on completion day. Only then complete the TA10.
Yes, and it happens often. Buyers of probate properties frequently ask for white goods, carpets, curtains or garden items to be left. Agreeing can reduce the estate's clearance costs, so it is often worth saying yes. It is entirely negotiable, and whatever you agree should be recorded on the TA10 so both sides are protected.
Then the TA10 is quick to complete: most answers will be "none at the property". Just make sure the clearance genuinely happens before completion, and that anything you have marked as included, such as carpets or light fittings, is not swept up in the clearance by mistake.
The TA10 Fittings and contents form (3rd edition), published by the Law Society in 2013 and still current. Unlike the TA6, which moved to a 6th edition on 30 March 2026, the TA10 has no changeover date to track. Your conveyancer will supply it.