When buying or selling real estate in Ontario you will be entering into various contractual obligations through the transaction process.
 
As required by the Real Estate Council of Ontario (RECO) all of these obligations are to be in written format. You should never enter into any part of real estate transaction verbally. Why? Good question, I’m glad you asked.
 
First: In Ontario, the written format is the RECO requirement.
 
Second:  The OREA forms/contracts are designed by lawyers and their intent is to protect the interest of all parties involved in the transaction process.
 

Third: You are protecting your best interest!
Simply put; there are many people involved in your real estate transaction process. Some of these people include the Seller and Buyer, AND other parties for both sides of the transaction. Some of these other parties include, Spouses not registered on title, Realtors, Brokerage Firms, Lawyers, Lenders, Land Titles… to name a few.  When all of these people review your transaction and perform on your behalf, they rely on the written contractual obligations - not verbal.
 
What are some of the common forms that are used in real estate transactions?
     -  Listing Agreement
     -  Agreement to Purchase and Sell
     -  Confirmation of Co-Operation and Representation
     -  Buyer Representation Agreement
     -  Working With a Realtor
     -  Fintrac
     -  SPIS
     -  As well as several other forms can/are used in the transaction process.

The following links will provide you with some insight to some of the forms that are used. The objective is to provide an explanation in layman “plain language”.
 
Here are the links:
      Listing Agreement
      Listing Agreement - Commercial - For Sale
      Listing Agreement - Commercial - For Lease
      Buyer Representation Agreement
      Buyer Customer Service Agreement
      Seller Customer Service Agreement
      Confirmation of Co-operation & Representation
      Agreement of Purchase and Sale
      Agreement of Purchase & Sale - Condo Resale
      Agreement of Purchase & Sale - Commercial
 

Regards
Mike