NC Form 4-T Agreement to Amend Contract: Fields, Signatures, and Copies

NC Form 4-T, the Agreement to Amend Contract, is the one-page document buyers and sellers in North Carolina use to change any term of a signed residential purchase contract. It works with the Offer to Purchase and Contract (Form 2-T) and the Vacant Lot/Land version (Form 12-T), and it is jointly approved by the North Carolina Bar Association’s Real Property Section and NC REALTORS.¹ Any change to a contract to sell land has to be in writing and signed by the party to be charged, so a handshake or a text message agreeing to a new price or closing date will not hold up.²

The current revision is dated July 2025.³ If an agent is involved, they usually prepare it. If you are handling the deal yourself, ask the closing attorney for a copy or go through the NC REALTORS forms library.

What to Gather Before You Start

Pull out the original signed contract and copy three things onto the amendment exactly as they appear:

The full legal names of every buyer and every seller.
The property address, word for word.
The date the original contract was signed by all parties.

A misspelled name or a transposed house number can create an argument later about which transaction the amendment actually covers. Get these right before you touch anything else.

Completing the Pre-Printed Fields

Form 4-T has fields for the terms that most often change in residential deals. Fill in only the ones that apply to your situation and leave the rest blank or marked “N/A” so nothing can be inserted after signing.

Purchase Price

Enter the original dollar amount in the “changed from” blank and the new amount in the “to” blank.¹ Price changes often follow an inspection that turns up repair needs or an appraisal that comes in low.

Earnest Money and Building Deposit

The form has separate blanks for the earnest money deposit and the building deposit. For each one that changes, enter the original amount and the new amount. The earnest money figure itself is fully negotiable between buyer and seller.⁴ The building deposit field applies when the deal involves new construction or specific improvements.¹

Due Diligence Fee

Use the “changed from / to” field for the due diligence fee if the parties agree to raise or lower it.¹ Any additional due diligence money goes directly to the seller, not into escrow, and it is nonrefundable except in narrow situations such as a material seller breach.⁵

Due Diligence Period

Extending the due diligence period is one of the most common reasons parties use this form. Enter the new expiration date; the deadline is 5:00 p.m. on that date, and the form carries the phrase “TIME BEING IS OF THE ESSENCE” next to the field.¹ Miss the deadline by a minute and the buyer’s right to terminate for due diligence reasons is gone.⁶ Get the signed extension in place before the original deadline passes. The seller is not required to agree.

Settlement Date

Enter the new closing date in the settlement date field.¹ Delays in underwriting, title work, or repair negotiations are typical reasons. Without a written extension, Form 2-T gives a built-in 14-day grace window before the delaying party is in breach.⁷ An amendment with an agreed-upon new date avoids that risk.

If you are the buyer and the closing is moving later, check with your lender about the rate lock and commitment letter. An expired lock can mean an extension fee or the loss of your rate.

Expenses

This field adjusts the dollar amount the seller contributes toward the buyer’s closing costs. Enter the original amount and the renegotiated amount.¹ Seller concessions often go up after inspections when the seller would rather credit money than make repairs. Lenders may cap concessions as a percentage of the price depending on the loan type.

Additional Buyer

To add a new buyer to the contract, write their name in the designated blank. By signing, that person accepts every existing term and every prior amendment or addendum. The original buyers stay fully on the hook; adding someone does not release anyone.¹ Every original party plus the new buyer has to sign.

Writing Custom Terms in Other Amendments

The blank lines at the bottom of the form are for anything the pre-printed fields do not cover. Common uses include an appraisal-gap commitment where the buyer agrees to cover a set dollar amount of any shortfall between the appraised value and the contract price, an agreement to complete specific repairs before closing, or a revision to inspection contingency language. Whatever you write here becomes part of the contract, so be specific. If the change is complicated, have the closing attorney look at the wording before anyone signs.

Signatures and Effective Date

Every buyer and every seller on the original contract has to sign and date the amendment, along with any new buyer being added.¹ One missing signature and the document is a proposal, not an amendment. Form 2-T itself requires all changes to be in writing and signed by all parties.⁸

The amendment becomes binding on its Effective Date, which is the moment the last party signs and that signed copy is communicated back to the other side. Until then, it can be withdrawn.⁹ Electronic signatures are fine under North Carolina’s Uniform Electronic Transactions Act (G.S. § 66-311 et seq.) as long as all parties agree to use them.¹⁰

Who Gets a Copy

The form itself prints a warning that all parties, including any lender and the settlement agent, must receive a copy.³ The closing attorney needs it to produce an accurate settlement statement, and the lender needs it whenever a financial term shifts. A price reduction affects the loan amount; a new closing date can affect the rate lock. Send the signed copy out promptly.

When You Need to Amend More Than Once

There is no limit on how many times a contract can be amended, and you can use a separate Form 4-T for each round of changes.¹¹ Fresh forms work well with electronic signatures and avoid problems with lenders who do not accept hand-written mark-ups on earlier documents. Date every signature. If two amendments change the same term, the last-signed amendment controls.

Some agents prefer to revise an existing Form 4-T with initials and dates instead of starting a new one. Either approach is legal. Pick whichever keeps the file cleanest for the closing attorney.

1
North Carolina Association of REALTORS. Agreement to Amend Contract Form 4-T
2
North Carolina General Assembly. North Carolina General Statute 22-2 – Contract for Sale of Land; Leases
3
NC REALTORS. Agreement to Amend Contract (Revised 7/2025)
4
North Carolina Real Estate Commission. Questions and Answers on: Earnest Money Deposits
5
North Carolina Real Estate Commission. Due Diligence Fees: When Are They Refunded?
6
North Carolina Association of REALTORS. Offer to Purchase and Contract Standard Form 2-T
7
North Carolina Real Estate Commission. Questions and Answers on: Real Estate Closings
8
NC REALTORS. How Do I Document Changes Involving the Parties Named in a Pending Contract?
9
NC Realtors. Effective Date of Contract (Paragraph 1(g), Form 2-T)
10
North Carolina Real Estate Commission. Tech Corner: Electronic Signatures
11
NC REALTORS. How Should I Document a Second Amendment to an Offer to Purchase and Contract?