Key ingredients to the NC Offer to Purchase
1. Buyer and Seller Identified - Who is buying and who is selling
2. Residential Property Identified - What is being purchased
3. Buyers $ offer is provided - How much is the buyer offering
4. Due Diligence Date and $ amount are selected - How much time does the buyer want to investigate property and get approved for financing......how much is buyer willing to pay for this time.
5. Earnest Money Deposit Amount selected by buyer - this is a $ amount chosen by and paid for by the buyer, to be placed in an Escrow account and to be released at closing or upon mutual agreement should the deal not close. The contract speaks to who would be entitled to this money depending on why the contract did not close.
6. Fixtures stay, Personal Property leaves (unless) - The buyer indicates fixtures that they want the seller to remove or they request certain personal property to be left behind
7. Settlement Date is selected - When does the buyer want to sign paperwork and have attorney go record the transaction (keep in mind ownership changes when attorney records, not when paperwork is signed at settlement) In most cases BOTH occur on the same day.
8. Escrow Agent is selected - Typically the closing attorney will be the escrow agent, but you also see the listing firm take on this role on occasion. The escrow agent holds onto the escrow
9. Buyer Representations are made -buyer must let seller know among other things, if they need to get a loan or sell/lease another property in order to by this home.
10. Seller Representations are made - Seller must let the buyer know among other things, how long they owned the home, if it was their primary residence, if it was built when lead paint was being used, and they must also fill out a property disclosure and a mineral/oil rights disclosure that are provided to the buyer at or before the time an offer is made.
11. Name on Deed will be chosen - How should buyers name appear on the deed
12. Buyer will alert seller if they want closing cost assistance - The buyer will have plenty of closing costs and pre-paids that are associated with buying the home. Some buyers ask the seller to help cover these costs. If the seller agrees, the buyer will get a credit from the seller at the time of closing.
13. Buyer will indicate if they want a home warranty - Some buyers will want a home warranty to help offset expenses on covered problems that may arise in the home. If the buyer wants the seller to pay for this warranty, they included this in the offer.
14. Buyer will indicate if there are any addendum's to this offer to purchase - Sometimes other documents need to be added to the offer to purchase. If they are going to be added, they must be alluded to in the actual offer to purchase. In most cases this is done by simply checking a box next to which addendum will be used.
Great Resources
Question and Answer on Offer and Acceptance - provided by the North Carolina Real Estate Commission
Earnest Money Deposits - provided by the North Carolina Real Estate Commission
Closings - provided by the North Carolina Real Estate Commission