First and foremost, you need to educate yourself on how real estate
transactions happen. There are online guides and plenty of books on the
subject at your local book store. When you decided to sell your own home,
you are considered a FSBO seller. The FSBO market is growing like mad, which
means you can find form contracts and agreements ready made for your
particular state just by contacting your local Title Agency or going online
and purchasing them.
 
The first thing to understand about real estate contracts is they need to be
in writing. Since the transaction involves hundreds of thousands of dollars,
putting the agreement in writing is common sense. In most states, however,
it is the law.While the law differs from state to state, it usually holds
that no contract with a value over $500 shall be enforceable unless in
writing.
 
A common clause with real estate contracts is an earnest money deposit.The
contract should contain a clause requiring the buyer to put forth a cash
deposit in a certain amount. The deposit proves the buyer is serious and is
used to compensate the seller for the time the home is off the market if the
buyer can't complete the deal. The buyer's failure is almost always related
to an inability to get financing and/or the home inspection does not satisfy
the buyer. In both cases the earnest money deposit must be returned to the
buyer because of the contingencies that will be written in the purchase
agreement.
Contingencies are the second thing to understand about real estate
contracts. Simply put, a real estate agreement often contains them. The
contingencies are for things that may or may not come up. For instance, a
buyer will include a contingency that he or she is only bound by the
agreement if a lender approves his or her mortgage application. Other common
contingencies include the agreement only being binding if the home passes
inspection.
 
At the end of the day, real estate contracts are not something to get overly
worried about. If there is something unique about your real estate
transaction, you should consult with an real estate attorney just to cover
your bases. Otherwise, all real estate contract forms should be fine.
 
When the buyer contacts the seller and makes an offer to purchase the home
we suggest that the seller contact the Title Agency of their choice at this
time. All Title Agency's are willing and able to take the deal from this
point forward and close the transaction for them. Supplying both parties
with a insured secured closing.