The Life Cycle of Texas Promulgated Contracts

If you've made it through the majority of your Texas pre-license real estate coursework, it might be time to learn about promulgated contracts. As a licensed real estate agent, you will be required to write contracts using forms that are promulgated — or required — by the Texas Real Estate Commission (TREC). It's important you can use them skillfully and competently on behalf of your clients.

"Promulgate" means to make known publicly. When TREC promulgates a contract, that means they've made it official, or law. In other words, they require that particular form to be used by all agents in any relevant transaction.

So how does TREC get from real estate transaction form to promulgated contract? And how do they decide which real estate transactions need to be promulgated forms? Here are the five steps of the promulgated contracts life cycle in Texas.

Step 1: The Committee Identifies a Real Estate Transaction that Needs a Contract

The Texas Broker-Lawyer Committee consists of six members appointed by TREC. They write and revise all contracts that TREC promulgates. Before TREC even considers a contract form for promulgation, the Broker-Lawyer Committee must identify a real estate transaction requiring a standardized contract.

There are six main sales contracts that TREC promulgates. These include:

• Residential
• Condo
• New construction
• Farm and ranch
• Unimproved property

Step 2: The Committee Creates a Contract for the Transaction

Next, the Broker-Lawyer Committee will create a draft of a form to use as a contract for that transaction.

Step 3: The Committee Posts the Contract for Public Feedback

The public is entitled to weigh in on legal contract matters. So once the Broker-Lawyer Committee has drafted a contract form, they post it publicly in the Texas Register. People can then submit their feedback.

Step 4: The Committee Makes Revisions to the Contract, Then Submits It to TREC

After the public has made comments, the Broker-Lawyer Committee will make revisions. They may not make every revision requested by the public, but they will carefully consider all comments and attempt to make changes that are in the best interest of the public. Then they submit the revised contract to TREC.

Step 5: TREC Decides If Contract Will Be Promulgated, Approved, or Dismissed

At this point, TREC has three options to consider.

• They may decide that the contract will be promulgated, meaning all agents are required to use it for relevant transactions.
• Alternatively, TREC could decide to approve the contract, but not promulgate it. That would mean that real estate agents may use it, but they are not required to use it.
• Finally, TREC might decide to dismiss the contract. That would mean that they'd rejected it, and the contract could not be used at all.

Enroll in Our Texas Promulgated Contracts Course Today!

Ready to start your real estate career? TREC requires you to receive 180 hours of pre-license education before you can become a licensed real estate agent. That includes 30 hours of promulgated contracts coursework. In the Aceable Promulgated Contracts Course, you'll learn about the different contract forms that are promulgated by TREC.

We'll also teach you how to understand and complete those contracts and their addenda. Aceable breaks everything down for you and makes it easy, so you can pass your exam with ease.

So what are you waiting for? Register for the promulgated contracts course today, and jump-start your real estate career!