There’s many a slip ’twixt the cup and the lip

won’t dare make an offer on another property until they see what happens with this one. Fooling the assessors

Q: I have a house for sale for $260,000, and I received a $220,000 offer for the house and a $40,000 offer for “fixtures.” My assessment is $229,000. The buyer wants to keep the assessment (and property taxes) low. My Realtor advised against accepting the offer. Is it legal to reduce a sales price by making the mechanicals and house contents a separate purchase?

— X., edithlank@aol.com

A: That sounds like a pretty amateur attempt to fool the assessors.

For one thing, in many jurisdictions they don’t automatically change assessments when a property is sold.

Then again, fixtures already go with the house — they’re legally considered part of the real estate.

And in many areas, sales tax could be due if it were the sale of that much furniture or appliances.

Then there’s the matter of your would-be buyer’s financing.

Does the buyer have enough cash to base the mortgage application on a $220,000 purchase price?

If not, he or she will probably expect you to sign a second contract for the bank to see.

Does the buyer know — and do you know — that lying to a federally chartered institution, which many lenders are, is punishable by a fine and up to a year in jail?

You may qualify for the homesellers income tax exclusion on profit from the sale, but you also may not, in which case there could be IRS complications.

Your broker gave you the right advice. Contact Edith Lank at askedith.com, at edithlank@aol. com or at 240 Hemingway Drive, Rochester NY 14620.