What Form Is Used the Most – and the Least?

ORLANDO, Fla. – There are currently 159 different forms available on Form Simplicity. Every now and then, I get the opportunity to see how often forms are used (or not used) by members who use Form Simplicity.

Please note that this is by no means a deep dive, but just a quick look at one set of data for the 4th quarter of 2022. All numbers are rounded to the nearest 10.

The FR/BAR “AS IS” is king of contracts – it’s not even close

Excluding local board contracts, members have three main contracts to choose from. Here is how often each was used in a transaction based on Form Simplicity. The first-place contract is also the most used form in the library, so it’s also No. 1 overall.

1. 63,650: Florida Realtors/Florida Bar “AS IS” Contract for Residential Sale and Purchase
2. 7,190: Florida Realtors/Florida Bar Contract for Residential Sale and Purchase
3. 1,070: Florida Realtors Contract for Residential Sale and Purchase

The second most popular form? A blank addendum

There’s a drop after the FR/BAR “AS IS” contract to get to the second most used form, which is the blank Addendum to Contract, listed as the ACSP-4. It was used 38,080 times.

This form can be used for all sorts of situations that aren’t addressed in one of the attorney-prepared riders. And, unlike contract-specific riders, this can be used for basically any contract, since there’s not a whole lot to it beyond blank space and a way to identify the contract it’s modifying.

In light of the popularity of this form, I’d recommend those who use it take a moment to make sure the issue they’re trying to draft around isn’t too complex or expensive an issue, since it’s very easy to add an unintentionally vague or ambiguous clause. Here’s an article that explains why drafting clauses in a legal context is far more challenging than most think. (See: Does a Short, Simple Clause Answer the 5 W’s?)

Few surprises in the top and bottom 3 contract riders

Here are the top and bottom 3 riders are for the Florida Realtors/Florida Bar form contracts.

Top 3

1. 30,390 Lead Based Paint Disclosure (CR-6 P)
2. 27, 670 Homeowners Association HOA – Community Disclosure (CR-6 B)
3. 22,880 Condominium Rider (CR-6 A)

Bottom 3

29.  420 Rezoning Contingency (CR-6 D)
30.  400 Assumption of Existing Mortgages (CR-6 D)
31.  330 Interest Bearing Account (CR-6 J)

Potentially helpful forms that don’t get a lot of attention

Have you ever heard of a Notice of Right to Reclaim Abandoned Property (NRAP-3)? It was only used 120 times but can be a very helpful tool for landlords who need to comply with their statutory obligation to let tenants know how to reclaim abandoned property (when applicable). This form also is helpful in that it gives a statutory reference (Section 715.109, Florida Statutes) for any landlord who wants to read more about the process.

The Florida Realtors Legal Hotline regularly hears about contract issues caused by a party trying to modify one or two terms via counteroffer, which creates contract formation problems, confusion about effective date, and general disagreement about how to clean up issues caused by the counteroffer.

One tool that might help avoid these situations is the Proposed Terms Sheet (PTS-1), which is essentially a nonbinding letter of intent and does not include signatures. It helps parties agree on key terms before preparing an initial offer. That said, with 210 uses, it seems clear that most parties prefer to skip this preliminary step and go to the offer-potential counteroffer stage immediately.

Have a suggestion for a new form, or a way to improve an existing one? While this isn’t technically a form, you can find the Form Change or New Form Suggestion Submittal (FRFCR-1) within Form Simplicity. If you open the “form,” it provides a link to a convenient, online way to share suggestions to improve the forms library. It was used 100 times. While we accept suggestions a number of different ways, this is a convenient one if you wish to submit suggestions while you’re already in the forms library on Form Simplicity.

Joel Maxson is Associate General Counsel for Florida Realtors
Note: Information deemed accurate on date of publication

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