Contracts & Agreements
How TREC-promulgated forms work in practice — what an agent may and may not change, and the amendments that follow.
Texas doesn't let real estate license holders draft their own contracts from scratch. Almost every residential sale runs on a form TREC has promulgated or approved — and knowing exactly what an agent can and can't touch on that form is a core exam topic.
Promulgated forms and their limits
A license holder generally may not draft custom legal language to add to a TREC promulgated contract form — doing so risks the unauthorized practice of law. What an agent can do is fill in the blanks the form provides, and add addenda that TREC has separately approved for exactly that purpose.
A license holder may generally use a contract form TREC hasn't promulgated or approved only when an attorney actually prepares it, or specifically directs its use, for that particular transaction.
Amendments vs. addenda
These sound similar but do different jobs:
- Amendment
- Changes a term of the ALREADY-signed contract — a new closing date, a revised price after negotiation.
- Addendum
- Adds an entirely new provision to the contract at signing — like a specific financing or inspection addendum.
Back-up contracts
A back-up contract is a real, binding agreement to purchase a property that's already under contract with someone else — it becomes the primary contract only if the first one falls through. It's a genuine second contract, not a mere expression of interest, and needs its own proper drafting and disclosure.
A back-up contract doesn't put the buyer "in line" informally — it's a fully binding contract from the moment it's signed, subject to the first contract's outcome. Treating it as a soft placeholder is a real practice mistake, not just an exam trap.
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