Preliminary contract of sale

People who have never encountered an apartment before, are often surprised and alarmed by the fact that the buyer asks, in advance, a few weeks before the registration of rights, to conclude a preliminary contract of sale. What is the essence of this document and what is it for?

In fact, this is a contract of intent: one side promises to buy property, and the other, accordingly, promises to sell it. Unlike the oral agreement, even if given with witnesses, a preliminary contract for the sale of a house, plot or apartment is a legal document and provides for the parties' liability for the termination of the transaction. This document establishes the date of transfer of property and money, as well as describes the conditions under which the transaction will occur.

Preliminary contract of sale, sample

We, the undersigned:

Then follow: The name of the seller, for example, Abdulov Boris Vitalievich, his passport data indicating the number, series and date of issue of the document, date of birth and place of registration (residence permit), hereinafter referred to as "Seller", and Valentina Gennadievna Bezrukova, date of birth, date Issuance of the document and the name of the organization that issued it, the address where the person is registered, hereinafter referred to as the "Buyer", enter into a preliminary sales contract on the following:

The buyer undertakes to purchase, and the Seller to sell one (whole) one-room apartment (if it is a question of shares in an apartment the shares are specified) located at the address: ul. Emergency room 22 (twenty-two) sq. M. 34, on the fifth floor of a ten-storey panel house with a total living area of 32.9 square meters. M.

Further, it is indicated that this apartment belongs to the Seller and on what grounds, for example, on the basis of the gift agreement concluded then ... Or on the basis of the contract of sale concluded (the date of concluding the contract, the name of the institution that concluded the transaction), what is the corresponding Record No. ХХХ, which is confirmed by a document on state registration No. УУУ.

Next come the conditions on which the preliminary contract of sale is concluded.

1. Indicates the price of the apartment (the amount first in figures, and then in words).
2. The order of payment is indicated, for example:

• The amount of 20 thousand rubles (twenty thousand rubles) will be transferred to the seller immediately, as soon as the contract is signed as a deposit;
• The amount of 312 thousand rubles (three hundred twelve thousand rubles) will be transferred to the seller within 4 days of the registration of the main contract;
• The amount of 800 thousand rubles (eight hundred thousand rubles) will be transferred to the seller in the account of the loan funds provided by the North Branch No. 965 of Sberbank of Russia, hereinafter referred to as the Lender (if the purchase takes place with the execution of a mortgage loan)

3. It is further stated that the Seller informs the Buyer that there are no arrests and restrictions on this apartment, and the Buyer notifies the Seller that the apartment will be pledged to Sberbank.

4. The deadline for the collection and processing of documents is set, and the deadline after which the former owner must leave the apartment is indicated.

5. The preliminary contract of sale may include the following clause:

If the deal breaks through the fault of the Seller, then he is obliged to return the deposit in a double amount, and if through the fault of the Buyer, the deposit remains with the seller.

6. The buyer and the seller certify that they are fully capable, aware of the essence of the contract, do not suffer from diseases that interfere with the essence of the transaction, and are not under guardianship or trusteeship.

In general, the preliminary contract of sale fixes the date and value of the transaction and is a sort of guarantor that it will not break at the last minute.