2026!
BY JOHN WAIT General Counsel
Hello fellow forms enthusiasts! Welcome to another year of forms changes. As always, a special thanks go to the members of the NC REALTORS® Forms Committee, NC REALTORS® staff and North Carolina Bar Association attorneys who helped. While this cycle marked a return to a more familiar process, it still generated considerable debate and thoughtful discussion. In my view, the forms are better for it.
So, what is on tap for 2026? Let’s take a look at the highlights.
1. Redrafted Form 220 (Buyer Agent Compensation Addendum) is simpler to use and easier for consumers to understand.
With the introduction of new Form 220, North Carolina will join a majority of jurisdictions in the United States that have moved toward the seller offering buyer agent compensation instead of the listing firm in residential transactions. Firms that wish to continue practicing firmto-firm buyer agent compensation may do so, but they will need to create their own forms.
The first step in the process starts with the Exclusive Right to Sell Listing Agreement (Form 101). If your firm is using new Form 220, and the seller authorizes buyer agent compensation, then check the first option in section 7(c) and fill in the blanks with the amount of compensation the seller wishes to offer. This revised section of Form 101 is how the seller gives the listing firm the permission it needs to communicate with buyer agents.
After that, make sure the purchase contract is filled out correctly, taking into account any other seller concessions agreed to that are in addition to any compensation in Form 220, if any.
2. The Due Diligence Fee delivery date has a little (and I mean a little) bit of wiggle room.
The Offer to Purchase and Contract (Form 2-T) still provides that any agreed-upon Due Diligence Fee is due and becomes the seller’s property on the Effective Date. However, the buyer now has until the next banking day following the Effective Date to deliver it. A banking day is defined as “every Monday through Friday and excludes Saturdays, Sundays, and holidays observed by the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve.”
This means that if a buyer goes under contract on Friday night, the Due Diligence Fee must be delivered no later than Monday (unless it’s a holiday!). If the Due Diligence Fee is not delivered on Monday (in this scenario), then the seller can make a written demand on Tuesday for payment, and if payment is not made Wednesday, then the seller could terminate on Thursday (if they wish).
3. What if the buyer demands to get in the home and do inspections during all the extra time they now have to deliver the Due Diligence Fee?
The seller can deny physical access to the Property, because Form 2-T has a new provision making it clear that: “Until the Due Diligence Fee is delivered, physical access to the Property may be limited or denied by Seller.”
4. The New Construction Addendum (Form 2A3-T ) now applies to many types of homes other than homes that are nearly completed.
In the past, there was quite a gap between the types of homes that the Offer to Purchase and Contract - New Construction (Form 800-T) applied to and the homes to which Form 2-T with the New Construction Addendum applied. That gap has been closed with the major revisions to Form 2A3-T.
Look at new Form 800G (New Construction Forms Guide) to figure out when to use each form. Be sure to also check out other information in the guide, including information about new construction warranties implied by law.
5. Adding additional parcels just got much easier.
New Form 2A10-T is designed to easily add additional parcels not only to the purchase contracts, but also to agency agreements. Just fill it out once, and then attach the form as needed to agency agreements and purchase contracts.
6. Form 2-T will now work much better with judicial sales thanks to new Form 2A15-T (Judicial Sale Addendum).
Judicial sales can be difficult to navigate, and the process can vary widely by county and by the type of sale being conducted. Form 2-T has historically been difficult to use in these kinds of sales, but new Form 2A15-T now makes many accommodations to Form 2-T to help the process. The new form has many informational items and adjustments to the contract to make it work better in these types of transactions. While the buyer and seller will still, in many cases, need an attorney, this form at least gives the buyer and seller a base of information to help make the transaction go as intended.
7. The Vacant Land Disclosure Statement (Form 142) is now much more user-friendly.
This form has been an excellent roadmap to help listing agents both discover and disclose material facts about vacant land since it was adopted. The new rewrite of this form aims to keep that functionality, while also eliminating many of the checkboxes and blanks that sellers were reluctant to fill. Hopefully, this change will encourage more sellers to fill it out, giving more and better information to buyers.
8. The Exclusive Buyer Agency Agreement (Form 201) can now better address new construction purchases.
New options in Form 201 now allow an agent and a buyer to make it clear that a commission for new construction is based on the value of the dwelling and the vacant land. Be sure to fill out these new sections, even if the buyer states that they are only interested in older homes!
9. The Referral Agreement (Form 730) now solves an age-old question.
Agents sometimes call the NC REALTORS® Legal Hotline and ask: Who owns a referral, the firm or the agent?
It is a good question, and on old versions of Form 730, that question is answered by the firm’s policy and procedure manual, the contractor agreement between the firm and agent, or any other agreement or practice between the agent and firm. It is sometimes a question that does not have a clear answer.
Going forward, Form 730 now offers a clear answer. Unless otherwise stated in Form 730, the referral belongs to the firm and not the agent. If the firm and agent wish to agree otherwise (and they can!), then make sure it is noted in the form at the time of the referral.
10. Not all property management forms are for property managers.
New Form 418 is a new, simple guide on small claims evictions. If you have a seller who needs a simple overview of the eviction process, or if you own your own property and need a roadmap of how to handle a tenant, then this form is designed to be a starting point. Stay in your lane, and don’t be afraid to bring in legal counsel, but if you need a simple guide on evictions, then this form is a good place to start.