The documents you will sign, in plain language

You will not see all of these at once. They arrive in four steps, roughly in this order, and Jenn explains each one before you sign. Which ones apply depends on the home, your financing and the contract.

1. 01

   Disclosure Regarding Real Estate Agency Relationship (AD)

   A California form that explains the duties an agent owes to a buyer, a seller or both. California law requires you to receive it before you sign a buyer representation agreement, and you sign to acknowledge you received it.

2. 02

   Buyer Representation and Broker Compensation Agreement (BRBC)

   The agreement that makes Jenn your agent. It sets out the services you receive, how and when compensation is paid, and how long the agreement lasts. Under MLS rules in place since 2024, a written agreement is signed before you tour a home with an agent. California law also requires one no later than your first offer and limits the term to three months. Compensation is not set by law and is fully negotiable.

3. 03

   Lender pre-approval letter and proof of funds

   Not a form you sign with us, but a document you gather early. Your lender confirms the loan you qualify for, and your bank statements show your down payment. Listing agents expect to see both with an offer.

1. 04

   Residential Purchase Agreement (RPA)

   The offer itself, and once accepted, the contract. It sets the price, deposit, financing, contingencies, deadlines and closing date, and confirms which agents represent whom. Jenn walks you through every section before you sign.

2. 05

   Advisories that come with your offer

   Short forms that flag issues worth your attention, including the Buyer’s Inspection Advisory (BIA), the Statewide Buyer and Seller Advisory (SBSA), the Wire Fraud Advisory and the Marin County disclosures advisory from the Marin Association of REALTORS®. You sign to show you received them.

3. 06

   Counteroffers

   If the seller wants different terms, they respond with a Seller Counteroffer (SCO). Offers can go back and forth until both sides sign the same terms.

1. 07

   Escrow instructions and deposit receipt

   Instructions to the neutral escrow company that holds the money and documents, and a receipt confirming your deposit arrived. Always confirm wiring instructions by phone with a known number before sending funds.

2. 08

   Transfer Disclosure Statement (TDS) and Seller Property Questionnaire (SPQ)

   The seller’s answers about the home’s condition and history: repairs, defects, permits, insurance claims and neighborhood issues. Some sellers, such as estates and certain trusts, are exempt from the TDS and use an Exempt Seller Disclosure instead. If the TDS reaches you after your offer, California gives you three days to cancel after hand delivery, or five days after it is mailed.

3. 09

   Natural Hazard Disclosure (NHD)

   A report showing whether the property sits in a mapped flood zone, dam inundation area, fire hazard severity zone, wildland fire area, earthquake fault zone or seismic hazard zone.

4. 10

   Property-specific disclosures

   Which ones you receive depends on the home: lead-based paint disclosures for homes built before 1978, the Homeowner’s Guide to Earthquake Safety for older wood-frame homes built before 1960, fire hardening and defensible space disclosures for homes in high or very high fire hazard severity zones, and the HOA document package for homes in an association.

5. 11

   Agent Visual Inspection Disclosure (AVID)

   Both the listing agent and your agent walk the accessible areas of the home and write down what they see. It is a visual check, not a substitute for professional inspections.

6. 12

   Inspection reports and local compliance records

   Reports from the home, pest, roof and sewer inspectors, plus any city resale report or sewer lateral certificate the town requires. You may also receive a Buyer’s Inspection Elections form listing which inspections you chose. If you decide not to inspect something, that decision is recorded in writing too.

7. 13

   Preliminary title report

   A report from the title company listing the owner of record, loans, liens, easements and restrictions on the property. We review it with you so nothing on title is a surprise.

8. 14

   Request for Repair (RR)

   If inspections turn up issues, this is how you ask the seller for repairs or a credit. The seller can agree, decline or reply with a counter.

1. 15

   Contingency removal (CR-B)

   Once your inspections, review of disclosures, appraisal and loan are satisfied, you release each contingency in writing. After removal, your deposit is generally at risk if you back out, so we review it together first.

2. 16

   Amendments and addenda

   If terms change after acceptance, such as a new closing date or an agreed credit, the change is put in writing and signed by both sides.

3. 17

   Verification of Property Condition (VP)

   Your final walkthrough shortly before closing, to confirm the home is in the condition agreed and any promised repairs were completed.

4. 18

   Loan documents and Closing Disclosure

   If you are financing, your lender must send the Closing Disclosure at least three business days before closing, so you can compare final loan terms and costs with your original estimate. You then sign the loan documents with a notary.

5. 19

   Final buyer settlement statement

   The escrow company’s final accounting of your purchase price, deposit, credits and costs. When the deed records, the home is yours.

This page is general information, not legal or tax advice. Forms are revised regularly, and the documents in your transaction depend on the property, the contract and the parties. Current California Association of REALTORS® forms are shared with clients by the team at the time they are needed.