How to Write a Home Sale Agreement

One of the most intimidating aspects of sellingfrom the stress of drafting an agreement o sale
your own home is the sales agreement.on your own.
Advertising and showing your home are the easyUtilizing a sales worksheet with an interested
parts, when you find a buyer - that's where itbuyer is a great option to nail down the details of
becomes a challenge. On the surface it seemsthe transaction. This is just a worksheet, not a
simple - just an agreement and a receipt, butlegal document, but contains all the things you and
when it comes to real estate the document mustthe buyer agree on. The worksheet actually can
be legally accurate.become a tool for working out the numbers and
Actually in the early days of home buying thecoming to an agreement. Once you've agreed on
agreement was a simple one page document withthe price, deposit, dates, and other terms your
the facts - the parties involved, the propertyworksheet can help your attorney draft a sales
address, and the purchase price. However today,agreement.
in order to avoid lawsuits, sales agreements areSome buyers are nervous when buying a FSBO
written by lawyers and are often about 10 pageshome and going to a professional for the legal
in length. This really puts a FSBO at apaperwork will relieve some of their worries. Many
disadvantage.buyers are also wary of paying an individual
Using a form from a local office store, often solddirectly. Your attorney can also serve as a third
as "Sales Agreement for Real Property", is a badparty for the payment and set up an escrow
idea and you could be laying the groundwork foraccount for you.
expensive litigation later on. These commercialThe best way to ensure a successful transaction
forms actually often contain more blank spaceis to make sure your agreement is completed
than legal language. Even relying on a friend whocorrectly. While it may be tempting to draft your
has drafted sales agreements in the past may beown documents, if you aren't a lawyer your
risky. The best option is to hire someone to doversion may not stand up in court. Find an
the sales agreement for you. In most statesattorney to help with this one step and you could
there are attorneys who specialize in real estate.find yourself successfully selling your first
While this option may be costly, it's still cheaperproperty!
than using a real estate agent and relieves you