Do you realize that the standard real estate contracts most Florida Realtors® use, are changed every couple of years? These changes reflect any legal actions that may have influenced the individual clauses in the contracts since the last release.

There are 2 contracts that are primarily used by Realtors® in Florida. These are the Florida Association of Realtors®  (FAR) contract, and the Florida Association of Realtors/Florida Bar (FAR/BAR) contract. These contracts can only be used by Realtors® or Attorneys.

In the Daytona Beach area (Volusia County), the FAR/BAR contract is used at least 95% of the time, and some listing agents will instruct all other agents to only submit offers on the FAR/BAR real estate contract. (I would like to point out that there are both pros and cons in different areas of each contract, and from city-to-city, across Florida, you'll find different predominant preferences.)

So, are you wondering why a listing agent would require all other agents to use only one contract? I’m glad you asked!

To stay abreast of new developments and contract changes, Daytona Beach area Realtors® (and most other Realtors at their Associations) have the option of attending classes that are offered by the association of which they're a member. A proficient Realtor® will do everything he or she can to continually educate themselves on these contracts so they can knowledgeably advise their clients. It’s imperative that a Realtor® knows the intricacies that can make or break a sale, or jeopardize a client's good faith deposit. If an offer is submitted on a non-standard contract that may be several pages long, how can the Realtor® be sure of the definitions and legal ramifications of every clause? 

When a non-standard contract is used, the only way to safeguard the interests of the real estate buyer or seller would be for both the buyer and seller to include the added expense of hiring an attorney.  It’s always a real estate buyer or sellers prerogative to have an attorney if they want one and I would actually encourage my buyers and sellers to obtain one if they feel the need to have one. However, Florida is not a state where real estate buyers and sellers are required to have an attorney, and in the Daytona Beach area, most closing are handled entirely by a Title Company.

So back to my statements about Realtors® needing to educate themselves, in order to be proficient and serve the best interests of their clients. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve seen things that were hand-written into a contract, that caused the legal clauses to be nullified. In their attempts to help, local Realtors® who had not attended the classes that were offered through the Daytona Beach Realtor® Association, did not even realize that in their attempts to help, they had actually hindered their clients interests!

One major instruction that all real estate licensees are told when they’re still in real estate school is that they’re forbidden to act in any capacity that is not in the scope of a real estate agent or Realtor®; which includes but is not limited to, acting as an attorney. One very important point I learned years ago in one of the contract classes that was offered at the Daytona Beach Association of Realtors is, when an agent adds something to a contract that has already been addressed in the legal clauses, they have actually voided the related clauses that were already part of the contract. The added clause overrides the protection that the experts already included in the standard contract. And I still see agents doing this all the time.

In summary, use a Realtor® when buying or selling real estate, so you can utilize the provisions of the standard FAR and FAR/BAR real estate contracts. And when choosing a Realtor® make sure yours is knowledgeable on all the intricacies of these contracts.

You may also be interested in this article I just posted called The Long and Winding Road to a Real Estate Closing

And Contingencies in Real Estate Contracts-Florida Legalities 

If you’re considering buying or selling real estate in Volusia County, FL, I cover Port Orange, South Daytona, Daytona Beach Shores, Wilbur by the Sea, Ponce Inlet, Daytona Beach, Holly Hill, Ormond Beach, Ormond by the Sea, New Smyrna Beach and Edgewater. And Adams Cameron & Co. also has offices in DeLand and Palm Coast if you need me to refer you to one of our other experienced Realtors®.

Buy Daytona Beach Real Estate