C.A.R. real estate forms are the standardized contracts, disclosures, and advisories published by the California Association of Realtors and used in most residential property sales in the state. The centerpiece is the Residential Purchase Agreement, known as the RPA, which serves as the binding contract between buyer and seller and doubles as joint escrow instructions once both sides sign. The rest of the library exists to satisfy California’s disclosure laws, document contingencies, and paper the steps between accepted offer and closing.
Who Can Get C.A.R. Forms and Where They Live
The forms are not publicly downloadable. Licensed real estate professionals reach them through the Transactions (zipForm Edition) platform, which comes with C.A.R. membership and includes statewide contracts, local supplemental forms, and transaction-management tools.1California Association of Realtors. California Association of Realtors Non-members who hold a valid California Department of Real Estate license or California State Bar license can buy standalone access for $1,499 per year, which covers the same statewide library members receive.2California Association of Realtors. Transactions zipForm Edition for Non-Members
If you’re a buyer or seller rather than a licensee, you will encounter these forms through your agent. You won’t be filling them out yourself, but knowing what each document does and which fields carry the most weight is what lets you negotiate rather than sign on autopilot.
The Residential Purchase Agreement
The RPA is the most widely used purchase contract for residential sales in California. In a single document it sets the purchase price, the financing structure, the earnest money deposit, contingency deadlines, the escrow timeline, and how closing costs are split. Once both parties sign, it also functions as joint escrow instructions, which is why agents, lenders, title officers, and escrow companies all work from it for the rest of the transaction.
Fields on the RPA that deserve careful attention:
- Purchase price and financing. The offer amount, down payment, loan type (conventional, FHA, VA), loan amount, and the maximum interest rate the buyer will accept.
- Earnest money deposit. The amount going into escrow and the deadline to deliver it. A common default is three business days after acceptance, but the number is negotiable.
- Contingency periods. Time for the buyer to complete inspections, secure financing, and review disclosures before committing to close.
- Personal property. What stays with the home. Appliances, window coverings, and attached fixtures cause more disputes than sellers expect when the list is vague.
- Close of escrow date. The target for transferring title and funds.
Every checkbox and blank has legal weight. Leaving a field empty isn’t a harmless gap; it can create an unintended default or waiver. Fill in a value and negotiate from there rather than leaving blanks that invite competing interpretations later.
The Required Disclosure Forms
California imposes some of the broadest disclosure obligations in the country, and several C.A.R. forms exist specifically to satisfy them. A missing or incomplete disclosure can give the buyer grounds to cancel the deal or pursue remedies after closing.
Transfer Disclosure Statement
The Real Estate Transfer Disclosure Statement (TDS) is mandatory for most residential sales under California Civil Code Section 1102, and sellers cannot waive it, even in an “as-is” sale.3California Legislative Information. California Code CIV 1102 – Disclosures Upon Transfer of Residential Property The form has four parts: the seller’s disclosure of known conditions (roof leaks, plumbing issues, unpermitted additions, neighborhood noise), the listing agent’s report from a reasonably competent visual inspection, a parallel section for the buyer’s agent, and acknowledgments for all parties.4California Department of Real Estate. Disclosures in Real Property Transactions – RE 6 The seller must disclose facts that materially affect the property’s value or desirability, including physical conditions and any prior inspection reports.5California Legislative Information. California Code Civil Code 1102 – Disclosures Upon Transfer of Residential Property
Natural Hazard Disclosure Statement
Under California Civil Code Section 1103.2, the seller must disclose whether the property sits within a Special Flood Hazard Area, a dam inundation area, a high or very high fire hazard severity zone, a wildland fire area, an Alquist-Priolo earthquake fault zone, or a seismic hazard zone.6California Legislative Information. California Code Civil Code CIV 1103.2 Most sellers pay a third-party disclosure company to run the report rather than reading the maps themselves. If the maps aren’t clear enough to make a confident call, the safe practice is to mark “Yes” and attach a professional report.
Lead-Based Paint Disclosure
Federal law requires a separate lead-based paint disclosure for any home built before 1978. The seller must disclose known lead-based paint hazards, provide the EPA pamphlet on lead paint risks, and give the buyer ten days to conduct a lead inspection unless the buyer waives that right in writing.7US EPA. Real Estate Disclosures About Potential Lead Hazards It applies regardless of the property’s condition and sits on top of California’s state disclosures.
Seller Property Questionnaire
The Seller Property Questionnaire (SPQ) goes further than the TDS by asking about legal claims against the property, insurance claims, HOA disputes, past deaths at the property, neighborhood nuisances, and environmental concerns such as mold or soil contamination. The TDS captures the baseline obligation; the SPQ fills in the detail that heads off post-closing lawsuits.
Contingencies and the Notice to Buyer to Perform
Contingencies are the buyer’s contractual safety nets. They let the buyer walk away without penalty if a defined condition isn’t met. The RPA’s default periods are 17 days for the investigation contingency (physical inspections, disclosure review, related due diligence) and 21 days for the loan contingency.8California Association of REALTORS. Quick Guide – Contingencies and Contingency Removal Both are negotiable, and in competitive markets buyers routinely shorten or waive them to strengthen an offer.
Here is the detail that trips people up: contingencies do not expire on their own. When the 17-day or 21-day clock runs out, all that happens is the seller gains the right to issue a Notice to Buyer to Perform (NBP). The NBP starts a new, shorter clock and gives the buyer two full days to either remove the contingency or cancel the contract.9California Association of REALTORS. Quick Guide – How a Seller Can Cancel a Purchase Agreement The day the buyer receives the NBP is day zero; counting starts the next day, and the deadline cannot land on a weekend or holiday. Only after that two-day period expires without action can the seller sign and issue a Cancellation of Contract (form CC).
Before sending an NBP, the seller must have met their own obligations: all required disclosures delivered, full access provided for inspections, no impediments to the buyer’s efforts. A seller who fires off an NBP while their own side of the deal is incomplete risks having the cancellation challenged.
Liquidated Damages and the Initial Boxes
The RPA includes a liquidated damages provision that both buyer and seller must initial to activate. Under California Civil Code Section 1675, a liquidated damages clause in a residential purchase agreement covering properties with up to four units, where the buyer intends to occupy, is presumed valid if the amount does not exceed 3 percent of the purchase price.10California Legislative Information. California Code Civil Code CIV 1675 If the deposit exceeds 3 percent, the seller carries the burden of proving the amount was reasonable, which is a much harder standard.
Most residential earnest money deposits land at or below 3 percent for exactly this reason. If a buyer defaults and the clause has been initialed, the seller keeps the deposit up to the 3 percent threshold without having to prove actual damages in court. If neither party initialed, any deposit dispute goes through the standard escrow dispute resolution process, which can drag on for months.
Mediation and Arbitration Work Differently
The RPA contains two dispute resolution provisions, and they do not behave the same way. The mediation clause takes effect automatically. Both parties are bound to attempt mediation before filing a lawsuit, and a party who skips mediation and goes straight to court cannot recover attorney’s fees even after winning. That consequence catches people off guard more than almost anything else in the contract.
The arbitration clause requires both parties to initial it separately. Arbitration replaces a court trial with a private proceeding, eliminates the right to a jury, limits discovery, and generally bars appeals. Because of what it gives up, California law requires affirmative opt-in. Understand what initialing means before you sign, not after a dispute has already started.
The Buyer-Broker Representation Agreement
Since January 1, 2025, California law requires every buyer’s agent to enter into a written buyer-broker representation agreement with their client no later than the time the buyer signs an offer to purchase.11California Department of Real Estate. Buyer-Broker Representation Agreement – Licensee Advisory C.A.R. publishes its own version of the form. As a practical matter, C.A.R. and many brokerages have their agents get it signed before touring homes, which is earlier than the statutory deadline. The form sets out the agent’s duties, the buyer’s obligations, and how the agent’s compensation works, topics that were historically left vague and now must be in writing.
Signing, Notarization, and Recording
Once terms are set and every form is populated, execution runs through electronic signature platforms. Under California Civil Code Section 1633.7, an electronic signature satisfies any legal requirement for a signature, and a contract formed with electronic records cannot be denied enforceability solely because it is electronic.12California Legislative Information. California Civil Code 1633.1-1633.17 – Uniform Electronic Transactions Act DocuSign and Authentisign are the standard tools, and they let parties in different locations sign the same package at the same time.
After signatures are collected, the completed package moves to the escrow officer, who opens a formal escrow file and manages the exchange of funds and title documents. That handoff marks the transition from negotiation to active processing; the contingency clocks laid out in the RPA start running from there.
Not every document can be signed electronically. The grant deed transferring ownership needs a notarized signature. California notaries may charge up to $15 per signature acknowledgment.13California Secretary of State. 2026 California Notary Public Handbook Recording fees for the grant deed vary by county and typically include a base fee plus surcharges for housing programs and fraud prevention; your escrow officer can quote the exact figure for the county where the property sits.
Federal Filings the C.A.R. Forms Don’t Cover
Two federal requirements apply on top of the C.A.R. package. Both are handled by the closing agent or through escrow rather than by any C.A.R. form, but sellers and agents need to expect them.
The closing agent files IRS Form 1099-S to report the sale. This covers the sale of any present or future ownership interest in land or permanent structures, including condominiums and cooperative housing stock, and it applies to transactions treated as sales for federal tax purposes even when no tax is currently due, such as a primary residence sale where the gain falls within the Section 121 exclusion.14Internal Revenue Service. Instructions for Form 1099-S
When the seller is a foreign person or entity, the buyer (or the closing agent acting for the buyer) must withhold 15 percent of the total sale price under the Foreign Investment in Real Property Tax Act (FIRPTA). A reduced rate of 10 percent applies if the sale price is between $300,001 and $1,000,000 and the buyer intends to use the property as a residence. No withholding is required if the buyer will use the property as a residence and the price is $300,000 or less.15Internal Revenue Service. FIRPTA Withholding FIRPTA withholding is the buyer’s legal responsibility, and failing to withhold can make the buyer personally liable for the tax. That is easy to miss when the seller’s citizenship status doesn’t surface until late in escrow.