It is common for buyers and sellers to use pre-printed form contracts for real estate transactions in Florida. The pre-printed forms have standard contract language, but you can add additional terms, cross out/delete sections, or otherwise modify the standard form contract. What happens if you add terms, and your added terms contradict the terms in the pre-printed form contract?
The general rule is that if you add language to a pre-printed form contract and your added language conflicts with the language in the pre-printed form, then your added language controls. See Mitchell v. Dimare, 936 So.2d 1178 (Fla. App. 2006) (“when written or typed provisions of a contract conflict with printed provisions, the written or typed terms ordinarily prevail if they cannot be reconciled.”) (citing Hurt v. Leatherby Ins. Co., 380 So.2d 432, 434 (Fla.1980); Allegheny Mut. Cas. Co. v. State, 176 So.2d 362, 365 (Fla. 2d DCA 1965)).
As a simple example, let’s say a pre-printed form contract states the effective date of the contract is the date the last party signs. The parties sign on December 20, 2025, but the parties write in the contract that the effective date is January 1, 2026. The January 1, 2026 effective date written down by the parties would be the effective date of the contract, regardless of the date the parties signed the contract.
Leave a Reply