The first thing you should do, before making an offer to purchase a property, is to carefully read all of the offer document. As soon as the seller accepts your offer to purchase the property, the "Offer to Purchase" document changes into a binding sales contract.
Unfortunately, it is my experience that too many buyers fall in love with a house and just do not take the time to read the sales contract.
"This is a standard contract, isn't it?", some buyers will ask, before blindly signing an offer to purchase document.
Let's just get this clear right now: THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS A STANDARD CONTRACT!
The offer document lying in front of you might be the real estate agent's "standard" contract, but without reading and understanding the implications of each clause in that specific contract, you cannot have any idea of what it contains.
In South Africa, real estate agents are employed by sellers. The real estate agent has a responsibility towards the seller to protect his/her interests. And the real estate agent's "standard" offer-to-purchase document will therefore most likely contain clauses that are not in the best interest of the purchaser - YOU!
The estate agent Code of Conduct requires real estate agents to display "due regard" for the interests of the other party in the property transaction, which is you. But the first priority lies with the person who gave the real estate agent a mandate, which is usually the seller.
I have often joked that if there is anything in "standard" real estate contracts which protects the buyer, it is because the real estate agent's advisory attorney forgot to take it out of the contract!
You, as buyer, have the right to make the offer you feel comfortable with. You decide what you are willing to offer for a property, in terms of money AND all the other things that you decide to include in the offer to purchase.
The seller's real estate agent is supposed to know how to word the clauses you want to include in the offer to purchase. And if he/she cannot or will not structure the offer to purchase according to your instructions, you are free to draw up the offer document yourself, or to get an attorney to do so on your behalf.
The seller's real estate agent is obliged to submit ALL offers to the seller, for consideration, unless the seller gave direct instructions that he/she does not want to see any offers that don't meet certain specific criteria.
Remember: In a property purchase agreement between a buyer and seller, EVERYTHING is negotiable!
So, my dear potential home buyer, read your sales contract very, very carefully and make sure that it says what you want it to say.
In most cases, there is no turning back later...
