A question on the Advice for REALTORS® blog about whether a seller can terminate a contract if the buyer doesn’t accept his amendment triggered a comment from Lenora Goff of Houston.

“This, to me, is one of the many things about our contracts that warrants a conversation with your clients, be they sellers or buyers. In Texas, we are blessed with great contracts. Let’s do our jobs well by helping our clients understand that the contracts are legal and binding. Using an article like this is a good place to start when discussing things like repair amendments with either party.”

Billy Waddell of Temple-Belton posted on the TAR Facebook page, looking for help with his slow laptop. He received a recommendation from Ashley Rathburn, the association’s member benefits manager, about benefits partner Tech Team One: “They removed 82 malware programs and files during two scans,” said Waddell. “TAR members get a discount off the regular $99 price to $80. My computer flies now.”

Recent blog posts about the option fee prompted comments from many Texas REALTORS®. Dena Davis of Austin floated the idea of replacing the option period with a predetermined buyer-inspection period: “The amount of money paid to the sellers is not enough to really compensate them for pulling the property off the market. Then all this business about receipting an option check would go away. It just provides one more thing for the lender to verify as well. Many times, the buyers have to show that the option check was cashed because those funds are credited toward their closing. This just does not need to happen in the first place.”

Have an opinion about these subjects or another real estate topic? Of course you do. Share it on the Advice for REALTORS® blog, the TAR Facebook page, or the for-clients Current Topics blog.

Marcia Livingston of Houston commented on a blog post about paying to extend an option period: “While putting a dollar amount might not seem logical, attorneys tell us that ‘valuable consideration’ is legally important here to be sure the contract is enforceable. I wouldn’t take the risk of ignoring that and putting my clients at risk.”

If you’re looking for information to share with your clients, check out the Current Topics blog. Cathy Harris of Rockwall liked what she found: “Wow! ‘64 Numbers you Shouldn’t Ignore’ is a very useful article. I wish I had this when I remodeled my kitchen and baths last year. I will definitely share this with clients.”