Andrew E. Blanche, Jr., and Cynthia D. Blanche - Page 16




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          the lessee a right to purchase the leased property under certain            
          conditions and within a certain time limitation.  The lease                 
          contract also contained a purchase refusal clause, which gave the           
          lessor the right to notify the lessee of a third-party offer to             
          purchase the property.  The lessee then had a certain time period           
          in which to purchase the property on the same terms offered by              
          the third party.  If the lessee failed to purchase, the lessor              
          then had a right to sell the property to the third party, subject           
          to the leasehold interest of the lessee.  During the term of the            
          lease (which had been properly extended under the terms of the              
          contract), the lessee mailed a proper notification form stating             
          that it exercised its purchase option.  Four days later, the                
          lessor notified the lessee of a bona fide purchase offer from a             
          third party, which was $5,500 higher than the purchase option               
          price.  The issue before the court was whether the delivery of              
          the lessee’s notice formed a vendor/purchaser relationship                  
          between the parties and thus nullified the provisions of the                
          purchase refusal clause.  The Supreme Court of Texas held that,             
          under the terms of that particular lease contract, the act of the           
          lessee’s giving proper and valid notice to the lessor did create            
          a valid and enforceable contract for a sale between the lessor              
          and the lessee, and, thus, the lessee, upon tender of the                   
          purchase price, was entitled to specific performance under the              
          terms of the purchase option clause.                                        
               In the instant case, petitioners and the Hewitts entered               
          into a contract for the sale of the Foxbriar property, with an              





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