A: Typically interests in real estate are assignable - meaning either the buyer or the seller could sell their rights under the contract to another party. An interested buyer could also enter into a contract where the second buyer have the right to buy the property even though the seller doesn't have full legal title to the property yet.
Assuming there is no contractual provision restricting the assignment of rights under the contract, Buyer I and Buyer II could enter into an agreement that states that Buyer II would have the option to purchase Buyer I's interest under the contract. If Buyer II executed the option, then Buyer II would start making the payments are required by the contract. It's important to note that Buyer I would still be liable to make the payments to seller if Buyer II failed to do so. As an agreement between Buyer I and Buyer II does not change the contract between Buyer I and Seller. If the Seller is involved, the original contract could be amended or assigned to Buyer II.
As an alternative, Buyer I and Buyer could enter into an agreement where upon Buyer II's executing their option to buy the real estate, Buyer II would provide funds to Buyer I, who would in turn pay Seller what is owned under the contract. Buyer I would then be obligated to convey the real estate to Buyer II.
Depending on the facts there might be other alternatives or possible solutions. Each matter depends on the facts. An attorney would be able to review the transaction and make a determination of what the best course would be given the client's needs.
A: A contract is an agreement between parties on how they are going to conduct business with each other. What is written in the contract is crucial to being able to determine what the agreement of the parties truly is. Contracts are all about the words on the page and what they say exactly. A well-drafted contract will make the responsibilities of both parties very clear.
A notice provision in a contract typically will say how much time a party has to give notice to the other party before the contract is terminated. This is different than what a term provision will say. For example, sometimes contracts will have language that says a contract cannot be terminated before the expiration of a certain time period. In that case, if one party terminates the agreement, full payment of the contract is still required to be made even if the service is not rendered. Other times, the term set forth in the agreement (e.g. 15 months) serves as a guarantee of price and other terms in the agreement. For example, "Contractor agrees to perform cleaning services to the Buyer for 15 months, at $XXX per month. At the end of the term, this contract will auto renew and will continue month to month until terminated by either party."
Proration is a term that is used to describe when a partial payment can be made. If the contract does not allow for proration and instead gives a monthly payment, then the full monthly payment would be due.
Contracts are all about what is written specifically in the contract. If terms are missing there can be interpretation of what the parties actually meant.
