Once you have found your Mesquite NV townhome, condo or home what next? Before going too far you need to make an offer to purchase. In Nevada we refer to real estate contracts as Purchase Agreements. In other areas these may be called Real Estate Purchase Contracts (REPC). Essentially they are all contracts to purchase real estate.
What are the necessary elements to a valid Mesquite NV real estate contract?
1. Legal Competent Parties– for a contract to be enforceable the law requires one to be legally capable. Minors are not able to enter into contractual obligations. Parties need be age 18 and older. Also persons of an ‘unsound mind’ as deemed by a judge may not enter into a valid contract.
2. Mutual Agreement- also known as meeting of the minds. There must be a willingness for a buyer to buy and a seller to sell. The evidence of this is usually found in the writing of a contract with signatures from both parties on what we call ‘the offer to purchase’ or offer. Purchasing Mesquite NV real estate is no different than any other area of the US. Usually what changes is the wording for the different contracts.
3. Consideration- For a contract to be enforceable it must be supported by consideration. In cases regarding real estate the consideration comes in the form of Earnest Money. The purpose of this is to demonstrate that a deal has been made. Items such as boats and cars have been used in place of money in some cases. What is used and how much is irrelevant as long as it is acceptable to both parties.
4. Contracts needs to be in writing when required by law- Mesquite NV real estate contracts must be in writing to be enforceable, this is the same in most if not all the US.
5. Lawful Objective- to be enforceable the the contract cannot be breaking any state or federal laws. A contract that for an unlawful purpose would be void. 
If you are working with a Mesquite Realtor (we hope it is us!) this will simplify the process because Realtors already have contracts that meet all the requirements and address certain Nevada specific needs. The Mesquite NV real estate contracts are updated regularly by the Greater Las Vegas Association of Realtors (GLVAR) attorneys and those that are on the real estate forms committee.
The current Purchase Agreement used by Mesquite Realtors is 11 pages. The purpose behind the Mesquite NV real estate professionals using the same contracts helps each one be on the same page. Each active Mesquite NV real estate licensee is required to take a ‘Contracts’ continuing education class at least every other year.
A contract can be as long or short as each party feels it needs to be. We have sold real estate on 1 page contracts. We have seen multi-million dollar commercial contracts on less pages than our 11 page Residential Purchase Agreement. Our advise to you is to be informed. If you need help with a contract talk to a Realtor or to your attorney.
NOTE: Contracts do change form state to state and we advise you to seek legal and professional help before entering into a contract to buy or sell real estate.
Article written by the Mesquite Real Estate Team from Bowler Realty. Bowler Realty is a licensed Mesquite NV real estate brokerage. We are licensed to sell real estate in Nevada and Arizona.
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