How Conflicts Are Interpreted in the GAR Purchase and Sale Agreement

​The Georgia REALTORS® Purchase and Sale Agreement includes clear rules for resolving conflicts or inconsistencies within the contract. These rules help buyers, sellers, and brokers understand which provisions control when multiple sections appear to say different things.
Order of Priority in the Agreement
When provisions conflict, the agreement is interpreted using the following hierarchy:

1. Handwritten changes take priority over any pre-printed or typed language.
2. Exhibits override the main body of the agreement.
3. Special Stipulations control over both the exhibits and the main agreement, including any handwritten changes.
4. FHA or VA Amendatory Clauses supersede conflicting provisions elsewhere in the agreement. Notably, the “Agreement to Seek Amendment to Purchase Price Prior to Termination” in FHA or VA exhibits is not considered a conflict with the Amendatory Clause.

Enforceability and Broker Compensation
The agreement (and any amendments) is generally enforceable between the buyer and seller even without broker signatures. However, if any provision changes a broker’s agreed-upon compensation, that change is only binding if the affected broker provides written consent.
If a Buyer’s Broker Compensation Exhibit is included, the agreement is not enforceable unless it is properly initialed by the required broker(s).
Special Stipulations Written by Brokers
When a broker drafts special stipulations on behalf of a party, that party, per the GAR agreement:

• Confirms the stipulations accurately reflect their intent,
• Accepts them as if they wrote them personally, and
• Agrees to indemnify the broker from claims arising from those stipulations.

Broker Disclosures and Information Sources
If a broker answers questions or describes aspects of the property or transaction, that information is presumed to come from the seller—not from the broker’s independent investigation—unless the broker provides a separate written disclosure stating otherwise.