Jd,
In a perfect world one should be able to sell and purchase on a hand shake alone.

Unfortunately, we do not live in a perfect world, and truthfully, considering the complexity of the real estate transaction where so many things can go wrong, even in a perfect world there would be a need for some form of a written contract.

Occasionally hand-shake transactions do happen.

However when things do go wrong, it would be very hard to defend a contract written on a proverbial napkin in front of the judge, much less a hand-shake....

The contract is written to protect the seller and the buyer. It also protects the agents and the brokers, because the legal liability could be potentially devasting when there is miscommunication or all the issues not addressed properly as they should be addressed.

Expecially in a multi-cultural society....where a "hand shake" can mean "done deal" for one side and "it was nice meeting you and no more" for the other....

The 35+ pages are all justified!

Jd: You're absolutely right, as Monika notes as well. You don't have to use the NVAR forms. However, as a practical matter, most Northern Virginia Realtors will, also for the reasons stated below. (And because there's no way an agent's broker would permit a form bought at, say, Office Depot to be used.)

As for why there isn't a standard form for all of Virginia: A couple of reasons. First, regulations and laws can vary not just by state but also county by county. And, second, each Realtor group develops the documents based on input from its members and from its lawyers.

I'm also a real estate investor, and I've seen investor forms that are just a page or two long. And, yes, they're perfectly legal. What they don't do is protect each party to the extent that the NVAR forms do. Also, they don't address various possible situations that might arise. Honestly, some sellers prefer the investor forms because they can understand the language in them. And legalese does tend to muck things up.

Hope that helps.

You can write your offer on a napkin and add the state required forms.
But why NOT use the 10 page VA contract that has evolved over many years?
It tries to spell out clearly what the sellers and buyers obligations are to
ensure a smooth transacation.

The NVAR as well as forms put together by other Realtor associations went thru years of legal revue. VAR offer forms include a regional contract as wellas other required addendums.
A contract is a legally admissable document that is signed by the partoes involved.
If u r willing top spend the time to do all the research and discussion NVAR went thru or hire an attorney at a high cost to you , NVAR forms r the best choice.
Even if u go to ur attorney, the other party has to agree to the documents ur attorney created or have them revued and accepted thru their attorney.
Do u want to really gothru that hassle?

I would love to c copies of the forms u say other localities use.

In short , the advantages of using NVAR forms:
1. They went thru extensive revue and are meet the state required legal standards.
2. Are accepted by most parties, hence less hassle on trying to use different forms.Please keep in mind that there may be modifications needed for which a real estate may have to be consulted under certain circumastances.
Rgds,
Ramesh Chandra
703 635 8209
mepcigroup@gmail.com