Prepare contracts
There are many ways to prep a real estate contract for e-signature, the easiest being with a PDF software such as Soda PDF Anywhere. You can either upload or scan an existing template, tweak the content to reflect the needs of the new buyer, and add all the signature fields necessary, OR you can create a contract from scratch directly within the application.
When preparing your contract, you can easily add multiple signers, signature fields, and form fields such as the signing date and the signer’s title. You can also request a mandatory attachment (e.g., a photocopy of a piece of ID), and you can even add an expiry date to indicate the date by which the documents must be signed.
Track signatures
Once you send your real estate contract to be signed, all you need to do is wait for all recipients to sign. The contract is sent to all signers by email, and they can simply e-sign with a touch of a button. It literally takes just a few minutes to seal the deal.
Soda PDF Anywhere allows you to track the status of each signature in real-time, so you know who has signed your contracts and who has yet to sign. As soon as someone has signed your package, you receive a notification so you never miss a beat.
Send reminders
Most e-signature software have built-in reminder features to facilitate the retrieval of signatures. No more drafting and sending emails, no more calling buyers and leaving 10 voice messages: all you need to do is open the app and hit the “send reminder” button located next to each signer’s name.
Not only can you manually send out reminders, if you’ve already set an expiry date when prepping your real estate contract, recipients will automatically receive notifications the closer they get to the cut off date. These nifty features ensure you’ll get everything signed on time, every time.
Download evidence summary
One of the main reasons e-signatures hold up in a court of law is because of their ability to produce a detailed audit trail. Soda E-Sign has an evidence summary generator which basically contains a list of all the digital steps that have been taken by all parties involved.
This electronic evidence summary is provided and authenticated by the trusted e-signature provider, which in Soda’s case is eSignLive by VASCO, and the audit trail can be downloaded with just one click right in the app.
Welcome to the digital age
Electronic signatures are becoming more and more popular, and it’s obvious how beneficial it is for real estate agents to make the switch from pen and paper signatures to e-sign. However, there are different laws that govern each country, state, and province, so one must make sure electronic signatures are recognized by their legal system first. In any case, most westernized countries have made electronic signatures legally binding.
For more information regarding the legality of e-signatures, click on the relevant links below: