The New York glossary uses “chattel” as the traditional legal word for personal property. It is an old term, but it still matters in documents, security agreements, and commercial-law vocabulary. Household goods, furniture, and certain fixtures are common illustrations.
Chattel stands in contrast to real property. That distinction is important because many New York definitions pivot on it. A bill of sale usually concerns chattel; a conveyance (deed) concerns real property. The same split shows up again in terms such as chattel paper, mortgage, lien, and power of attorney transactions tied to property rights.
Why it matters: Even though the word sounds old-fashioned, it still appears in statutes, contracts, and finance documents. Understanding it helps a reader avoid treating every property document as a real-estate document.
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