Free Alabama Residential Purchase Agreement Template

An Alabama residential purchase agreement is the written contract a buyer and seller sign to agree on a home sale. It covers everything from the price to the closing date, and it comes before the deed. The agreement sets the terms, and the deed transfers ownership once those terms are met.

A few Alabama rules shape how you write a home sale contract and how you finish the sale. Knowing them early keeps your Alabama residential purchase agreement in step with the deed that follows it.

Put the Deal in Writing

Alabama treats a contract to sell land as void unless it is in writing (Ala. Code § 8-9-2(5)). The signature must come from the person the contract binds, or from someone they authorized in writing. This rule has one exception. It covers a buyer who has paid part or all of the price and whom the seller has put in possession. So get every term on paper, and have both sides sign.

List Each Seller’s Marital Status

A probate judge won’t record a deed or land contract that leaves out each individual seller’s marital status (Ala. Code § 35-4-73). The same section makes a knowingly false statement of marital status a misdemeanor. Capture this detail in the agreement, and the deed can carry it forward.

Budget for the Deed Tax

Alabama collects a tax before the probate office records a deed. The rate is 50 cents for each $500 of value, or fraction of $500 (Ala. Code § 40-22-1). Property worth $500 or less pays 50 cents. For example, a $200,000 home with no mortgage offset comes to $200. Only the value above any mortgage on which Alabama’s mortgage tax has been paid counts toward this tax.

Tax rates and fees can change, so confirm the current amount with the probate office before closing.

Bring Proof of the Sale Price

The deed must arrive at the probate office with proof of the actual purchase price (Ala. Code § 40-22-1). The Alabama Department of Revenue created a form for this, the Real Estate Sales Validation Form. Without proof, the probate judge bases the tax on the property’s most recent tax assessment and adds a penalty. Withholding proof on purpose after a specific request, or giving false proof, carries its own penalty. It is $100 or 25% of the tax due, whichever is greater.

Yes, when a married seller is selling their homestead. Under Alabama law, a married person’s deed or other transfer of their homestead isn’t valid without their spouse’s voluntary signature and assent (Ala. Code § 6-10-3).

That assent has to be shown in a specific way. An officer authorized to take acknowledgments of deeds examines the spouse. That officer then puts a certificate on the deed or attaches one to it.

For a buyer, this is the question to settle early. If the seller is married and the house is their home, plan for both spouses to sign. When it’s unclear whether a property counts as a homestead, a local real estate attorney can tell you.

Once you agree on the terms, these steps take the sale from signed contract to recorded deed.

1. Sign the agreement. Both parties sign the Alabama residential purchase agreement, and each keeps a copy.
2. Prepare and sign the deed. The seller, or an agent with written authority, signs at the foot of the deed (Ala. Code § 35-4-20). One witness must attest the signing, or two if a signer cannot write their name.
3. Acknowledge it instead, if you prefer. An acknowledgment before an authorized officer satisfies the witness requirement (Ala. Code § 35-4-23).
4. Add the spouse’s assent for a homestead. Where the homestead rule applies, the seller’s spouse signs and is examined as described above.
5. Complete the validation form. Fill in the Real Estate Sales Validation Form, or gather other proof of the price.
6. Record the deed. Take the deed to the office of the judge of probate (Ala. Code § 35-4-50), and pay the deed tax and recording fee.

Most of the work is agreeing on the details. Make sure your contract covers:

• Buyer and seller names, plus each seller’s marital status
• Street address and legal description of the property
• Purchase price, earnest money, and how the buyer will pay
• Contingencies, such as financing, inspection, or appraisal
• Closing date, and who pays which costs, including the deed tax
• Signature lines for everyone who must sign, including a seller’s spouse where the homestead rule applies