NEW COMMERCIAL CONTRACT FORM
By Robert D. McTaggart, Attorney

January 10, 2000

The North Texas Commercial Association of Realtors® (“NTCAR”) recently published a new
Commercial Contract of Sale form. The form is being used for many commercial property transactions in
Texas. You can distinguish the new form from the old form by looking at the bottom of each page — the
new form shows (8/99) after the copyright notice.

If you have any doubt about whether you should be using the new form for Texas properties instead
of the old form, then read on. A new Texas statute was enacted in 1999 requiring a notice, which is in the
new form as a new Section 5E Notice Regarding Possible Annexation. The new Texas broker’s lien
statute also requires a notice, which has been added to the new form as Section 15C Right to Claim a
Lien. A federal statute on disclosure of information on lead-based paint applies to residential real property
including multi-family properties. An Addendum E was added to the new contract to enable that
disclosure to be given.

Many other changes to the Contract form were made to improve the form. In some cases, the
NTCAR forms committee determined that substantive changes were necessary to avoid confusion or
possible misunderstandings. For example, the old form required the Seller to pay for the Survey, but there
was a separate sentence that required the Purchaser to pay for the Survey if the Purchaser terminated the
Contract. The new form simply provides for the Seller to pay for the Survey — the separate sentence was
removed. Other changes were made for clarification and ease of reading. A lot of work went into
improving this form by a number of different people. We think you will like the new form, and we
encourage you to use it.

Robert McTaggart is Board Certified as a specialist in the area of Commercial Real Estate Law
by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization. He is a partner with the law firm of Palmer, Allen
& McTaggart, L.L.P. and works with buyers, sellers, owners, tenants, investors and lenders to
help complete real estate and business transactions. He also serves as legal counsel to the North
Texas Commercial Association of Realtors®.

The foregoing article is intended to give an overview of the topic discussed but is not
intended as legal advice. If you have a specific legal question or need legal advice, contact an
attorney of your choice.