Sale and purchase contracts

The agreement before the deed

A sale and purchase contract records the buyer's and seller's obligations. Signing ordinarily creates contractual rights; delivery of the deed at closing transfers legal title.

Essential terms

Identify the parties and sufficiently describe the property. Specify price, payment, deposits, financing, included fixtures and personal property, inspections, title evidence, closing expenses, prorations, closing date, and possession. Closing and possession can occur on different dates. Mutual promises can provide consideration without an earnest money deposit.

Acceptance must match the offer and be communicated as required; a material change is a counteroffer. An ordinary enforceable real estate sale agreement should be written and signed by the party against whom enforcement is sought. For covered transactions, electronic form alone does not defeat enforceability, and federal E-SIGN does not require acceptance of electronic signatures.

Conditions and performance

Financing and inspection provisions determine the parties' rights, duties, notices, and deadlines. Read the actual agreement: private forms differ, and there is no universal inspection or financing period for every Florida sale. An as is clause generally allocates condition and repair responsibilities without erasing disclosure duties. Default remedies depend on the agreement and law; a failed closing alone does not determine deposit entitlement.

Florida protections

Under Fla. Stat. § 689.261, the residential property tax disclosure must be presented at or before execution. The seller's taxes may not predict the purchaser's taxes after ownership changes. Under Fla. Stat. § 689.29, covered new dwelling transactions require disclosure when the seller or a related entity has severed or retained, or will sever or retain, subsurface rights or entry rights.

Fla. Stat. § 689.27 permits qualifying servicemembers buying a primary residence to terminate before closing for specified military reasons. Written notice must include orders or commanding officer verification. Funds must be refunded within seven days after qualifying termination.

Follow the sequence: agreement, terms and disclosures, conditions and performance, then closing and possession, or authorized termination and default remedies.