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When I wrote my first real estate contract in 1976 (I filled in the blanks) the form was one page. In the frontier days a handshake and a person’s good name were the only requirements needed to convey real property. Recently as I numbered, copied, collated, separated and stapled a fairly typical eleven page contract, I reflected on the ever increasing number of legal forms buyers and sellers are required to sign.
A straight forward offer to purchase contract today includes a four page base contract plus addenda to cover finance, legal description, franchise, Kansas Tax Assessment, lead paint disclosure, seller’s property condition disclosure(two or three pages), alternative agency relationship disclosure and another for an offer subject to the sale of an other property. In addition buyers are required to sign a one or two page buyer agency agreement, an estimated closing cost estimate disclosure and a confidential buyer’s information summary.
After an offer is accepted the paper onslaught continues. Sellers and buyers may be required to sign inspection riders, acknowledgments, notifications, five day demands, change orders, releases and amendments. The lender and title companies require a dizzying array of signed documents germane to surveys, appraisals, registration and recording. Many lenders require buyers and sellers to sign a form which effectively says if we forget to have you sign something or you sign in the wrong place or you miss a signature section, you (the buyer or seller) agree to come back in and sign more documents.
The best way to prepare for a multiple step process is to discover the steps involved. I prepare buyer and seller kits which contain all of the potential pertinent documents that may be signed in a normal real estate transaction. Oh for the days of the handshake and neighbor’s good word.
Whether you’re thinking about buying or selling or merely seeking information, rely on me to provide accurate up to date information about the marketplace today.
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