New Agreement of Sale reflects changes to inspections, mediation

Some major changes have been incorporated into a new PAR Standard Agreement for the Sale of Real Estate (Form ASR) which will be available later this year.

Last updated in 2005, the new Agreement of Sale includes:

• Expanded and reorganized broker blocks which have been changed for clarity and ease of use
• Updated mortgage contingency paragraph to include an appraisal contingency clause
• Changed format for handling inspections to include more inspection contingencies and allow for a variety of circumstance
• Reduced default time for inspections to 10 days
• Change in language to dictate what will happen to escrow monies in response to the new Real Estate Licensing Registration Act (RELRA) changes
• Mandatory buyer/seller mediation as compared to the current agreement where the buyer/seller can waive mediation.

The revised form was recently approved by the Pennsylvania Association of Realtor®’s Standard Forms Oversight Committee and will require final changes prior to its publication.

As in the past, Guidelines for the Agreement of Sale, which explains how to use Form ASR, will be available when the form is published.