Choose the Right Contract for Buying or Selling Vacant Land: Unimproved vs. Farm & Ranch in Texas

If you're representing a Seller of vacant land, you'll choose either "Listing: Residential" or "Listing: Farm and Ranch" depending on the property. 

Representing a Buyer:

A Farm and Ranch Contract is used for buying land intended for farming or ranching activities, while an Unimproved Land Contract is used for buying raw, undeveloped land with no existing structures or utilities, essentially just vacant land the key difference is a type of property being purchased - with the Farm and Ranch contract addressing specific details relevant to agricultural operations that aren't included in the Unimproved Land Contract. The key difference is the type of property being purchased, with the Farm and Ranch contract addressing specific details relevant to agricultural operations that are not included in the Unimproved Land Contract. 

Unimproved Property Contract (Form ID: 9-16):

This contract form is for property that does not have physical buildings, additions or fixtures on the land. It is generally used for property that has been platted (has a recorded Lot/Block legal description). It is not for use for condominium transactions.

Farm and Ranch Contract (Form ID: 25-15):

This contract is generally used for rural properties with metes and bounds property description from a survey and contains provisions to deal with items that are relevant to farms and ranches that are not specifically addressed in other types of contracts.

You can find the transaction type in Dotloop by following these steps:

Click "+Loop"

Then you need to name your loop (usually the address of the property or the client name):

Then click the drop-down menu and choose the template you want. If you're representing a seller of vacant land, you'll choose either "Listing: Residential" or "Listing: Farm and Ranch" depending on the property. If you're representing a buyer and you'd like to use the Unimproved Property Contract, you need to choose the template titled "Buying: Unimproved Property" and if you're representing a buyer for farm and land, you'll choose the template "Buying: Farm and Ranch."

Then bypass the upload photo prompt, click "view loop" and you'll enter your loop and see the contracts.

Please remember that before showing property to your buyers you MUST already have filled out and have the clients sign the Residential Buyer/Tenant Representation Agreement which will be autopopulated into your buy side loops.

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