California Residential Purchase Agreement and Joint Escrow Instructions Form

When you make an offer to buy real estate, you are entering into an executory contract. This is an agreement which is in the process of being performed.At the simplest level, A Residential Purchase Agreement (RPA) says, “I’ll buy your house for this many dollars, within this agreed period of time. The seller’s signature on the form signifies their agreement and creates obligations on each party.One element of an enforceable contract is consideration. This means “something of value.” It is most commonly a check of some substantial amount (typically 1%-3% of the offered price). It is called an earnest money deposit (EMD). It is money to show that you are serious—”in earnest.”If you fail to perform your obligations under the contract, the seller may be able to keep your deposit. To protect you, there are certain terms in the RPA called contingencies. The most common are the contingencies for appraisal and loan.The appraisal contingency says, “If the appraiser doesn’t think this house is worth what I have agreed to pay for it, I get to cancel the deal and the seller will return my deposit to me.” If a property’s appraisal is lower than the agreed purchase, the buyer and seller most commonly renegotiate the price. Even in a very “hot” market, sellers are reluctant to lose an active and qualified buyer.The loan contingency says, “This agreement is subject to my getting approved for a loan at the terms I’ve outlined in my offer. If the lender doesn’t approve my application, I get to cancel the agreement and get my deposit back.”Contingencies for all purposes have an agreed time limit. In California, it’s typically 17 days, but buyer and seller may agree to a longer or shorter time frame.Once you remove a contingency, such as a loan contingency, your deposit is at risk. If there is a delay in getting your loan approved within the time period specified, the seller’s agent may start pressing your agent to remove the loan contingency. If you do this and you can’t get the loan for some reason, you could lose your earnest money deposit. Be very careful before when agreeing to remove this important safeguard.You should also be aware of what closing costs you agree to pay, which ones the seller will pay, and which ones you might share. Some of this is driven by local custom. In Northern California, it is customary for the buyer to pay their escrow fees and both policies of title insurance. In Southern California, the seller often pays those items. Similarly, there is a transfer tax based on the sales price of the property. It’s $1.10 per thousand. In Northern California, the seller typically pays it, but none of these items is carved in stone. Even though there may be costs typically handled by the buyer in your area, there is nothing wrong with asking the seller to pay them.The typical CAR Residential Purchase agreement is ten pages, plus a couple of addendums. Before you sign any offer, you should go through every page—even though much of it is boilerplate—and make sure the costs and other terms are exactly what you intend. I was involved in a sizeable transaction a few years ago where the buyer (my borrower) asked the seller to pay about $8,000 in closing costs. Her agent wrote that request in plain language on Page 3 of the RPA. She also asked the seller to leave all the appliances.The seller’s agent neglected to inform his client that he’d be paying those costs and leaving those items. The seller had relied on the agent to guide him through the contract and was surprised to discover that he’d be paying closing costs and leaving the appliances. The agent, who had not done his job properly, gave up every dime of his commission because of his lack of diligence. He was lucky to keep his license.The lesson is that any buyer should be very familiar with the terms of the contract before they sign it. The typical purchase contract was written by attorneys, but in language that any consumer and their agent should be able to understand. It was drafted with an eye to consumer protection, but reading and understanding it is a must.I hope this is helpful.

Rule 20-4-703 Preservation of Records. An escrow agent shall preserve the records, books, and accounts pertaining to each escrow transaction for at least three years following the final settlement date of the transaction. An escrow agent may use an electronic record keeping system.

Escrows are voluntarily completed by full performance/execution and closing, or the escrow may be terminated by mutual consent. The termination of the sale escrow is accomplished by cancellation of the escrow, and by rescission or cancellation of the residential purchase agreement, or other form of agreement of sale.

Canceling Closing Escrow Generally, once you are in the escrow process, you may back out only if the other party fails to meet contingencies. Check the terms of your sales contract. The other party may wish to negotiate rather than cancel the sale. Inform the escrow company the sale has been canceled.

Fill Out the Form You must make a written request to your lender or loan service to remove an escrow account. Request that your lender send you the form or ask them where to obtain it online, such as the company's website. The form may be known as an escrow waiver, cancellation or removal request.

A California residential purchase and sale agreement is a contract between an individual/entity selling a property and the individual/entity intent on purchasing said property. ... It is the seller's duty, by law, to include a disclosure notifying the buyer of any issues concerning the state of the property.