State specific real estate contracts

We are frequently asked about "state specific" sales forms:   i.e. a sales contract for Georgia or California.

• In Georgia, as in most states, the document called a state sales contract is actually the property of the Georgia Board of Realtors, a private organization for real estate brokers.
• The California Association of Realtors (CAR), a private trade association, labors to create the impression that homes cannot be sold in California without the hefty three-part forms they sell to California's realtors. Though Audrie.com is not an attorney we see no reason why a deal written on an Office Depot contract, or on a blank napkin, would not be legally binding in California.
• These so called "state-specific contracts" are distributed through real estate brokers and are not usually available for purchase by individual home owners.
• Brokers and real estate agents will often provide a sales contract on request. The only cost is listening to the broker's sales pitch on why you should hire him to sell your property.

How do state contracts differ from real estate contracts "valid in all 50 states" ?

• To be "valid in all 50 states" forms sold by office supply chains contain clauses not required in every state. For example:
  1. Earthquake hazard disclosure required in California but not in New York.
  2. Wild fire hazard disclosure required in Western states but not in Georgia. 
• While major forest fires seldom occur in Georgia, it does no harm for the disclosure form to ask if the property is in a wild fire hazard zone. The Georgia seller can simply ignore the question or check the "don't know" box. The New York seller can respond similarly to the question of "known earthquake hazard area."

What is the advantage of a state specific sales contract ?

• Real estate lawyers are more familiar with the sales contract published by the Real Estate Association in their state.  An experienced attorney knows exactly what the "state contract" says and effectively does not have to read the document. He needs only check for modifications.
• The increasing popularity of contracts "valid in all 50 states" means that more attorneys are familiar with these contracts.

Why does a "valid in all 50 states" contract seem smaller than a state contract ?

• Commission splits - State real estate contracts often devote a page or more to list each broker and describe the conditions under which his percentage of the commission is earned.
• Broker management - Each broker has several deals active at one time so it is to their advantage to have the sales contract list everything the broker needs to track: i.e. the name and number of the mortgage broker, the lender, terms of the mortgage application, etc.

State laws regarding real estate primarily address the regulation of brokers and agents, the recording of deeds, and the things a Seller must tell a Buyer about the property: i.e. a disclosure statement such as included in our kit.

• If a qualified Buyer agrees to your price and terms, get his signature on whatever piece of paper you have at hand. (Okay, not a napkin, but a purchase agreement from the neighborhood office supply store is just fine); then hand over a filled out copy of a Seller's Disclosure Statement.
• With disclosures made, and a signed Sales Agreement in hand, you can take your house off the market and enter negotiations for a new house.
• The officer responsible for the closing, (be it an Escrow Agent, Title Officer, Escrow Attorney, your attorney, or the mortgage lender's attorney) will transfer relevant facts to other forms as they see fit.
 

Homes have been sold in the United States long before state contracts, even long before states. These old contracts are still valid, and we are not aware of any state law requiring the use of a specific form to record the agreement between buyer and seller.