What the 2012 Northern Virginia Regional Sales Contract Means to Buyers & Sellers

What the 2012 Northern Virginia Regional Sales Contract Means to Buyers & Sellers

Beginning January 1, 2012, the new Northern Virginia Regional Sales Contract will be in use. Will all agents in Northern Virginia be using them? No, but the smart ones will be. Why? The language that is being removed, while causing quite an uproar, is ambiguous at best.

The paragraph being removed is our infamous paragraph seven. As of December 2011 it reads as follows:

Purchaser accepts the Property in the condition as of the Contract Date except as otherwise provided herein. Seller warrants that, except as otherwise provided, the existing appliances, heating, cooling, plumbing, electrical systems and equipment, and smoke and heat detectors (as required), will be in normal working order as of the Possession Date. Seller will deliver the Property in substantially the same condition as on the Contract Date and broom clean with all trash and debris removed. Purchaser and Seller will not hold the Broker liable for any breach of this paragraph. Seller will have all utilities in service through Settlement or as otherwise agreed.

What is changing is that, first of all, you get to pick from Contract Date, Date of the Home Inspection or Settlement Date what condition the property will be delivered in "substantially the same physical condition" as. In the above paragraph, it was pre-determined as Contract Date. Wisely, now buyer can choose to have it on the date of the home inspection, which gives a written record of the actual property condition.

Secondly, the lanaguge in bold above is being changed to:

Purchaser acknowledges that except as otherwise specified in this Contract, the Property, including electrical, plumbing, existing appliances, heating, air conditioning, equipment and fixtures will convey in its AS-IS condition as of the date specified above.

Do NOT let this language upset you as a buyer. For years, buyers and sellers have duked it out over that very vague phrase "normal working order." What exactly is normal working order? If a faucet has dripped slowly for years, but still works, is that its normal working order? If a heating system makes loud noises, but still heats, is that its normal working order? You can see how this phrase is questionable. Buyers interpret it one way. Sellers another. I for one am glad that the language has been removed.

Buyers will still have the protection available to them of a home inspection contingency, but only if they choose to make that part of the contract. I highly recommend they do. The home inspection language doesn't allow that certain items, like the major systems in the home be fixed in order for the contingency to be removed, but it does require agreement in writing from both parties as to what is being fixed. If the parties can't agree, the buyer can send over the home inspection and notice VOIDING the contract. Yep, the buyers can simply void the contract if they are not pleased. And buyers need not worry that sellers are going to attempt to sell homes which issues, without disclosing defects. The laws of the Commonwealth of Virginia make hiding material defect ILLEGAL for sellers.

The laws of our state and the protection of the home inspection still give the buyers more protection they realize. And as an agent who has represented sellers and buyers in AS-IS sales as the majority of my real estate practice since 2007, I am already well versed in what the absence of the warranty language that is disappearing means to a contract. Seems all that preparation in the world of Northern Virginia Short Sales has me ahead of the game. Bet agents who avoided Short Sales for all these years didn't see this one coming, but Short Sale Agents can tell you how hassle free our contracts are for sellers and buyers alike. Not haggling over "normal working order" is a huge relief for all involved.