So you’re curious about what happens after you submit an offer to purchase a home...don’t worry, so is every other first time home buyer out there. When you finally reach the point in your home search where you are ready to make an offer, it can be overwhelming, nerve racking, and exciting all at once! It’s important to remember that working with the right REALTOR® should help you put those nerves at ease. Your REALTOR® is your one stop shop to guide you & advocate for you during this part of the process. But what happens once your REALTOR® sends it off to no man’s land?
Well a couple things, and every scenario is different!
In every offer is a very important section titled, times of the essence. This section tells the listing agent, and the seller they represent, just how quickly they have to respond to your offer. Ask your REALTOR® to guide you on the strategic approaches to this very important time frame. The listing agent has an ethical duty to present every offer received to their seller in a timely manner. Once your offer is officially presented things can go a couple different ways. What’s important to note here is that if you have not received a reply by your time of the essence, your offer has officially expired and both parties have the ability to walk away.
Once your seller has had the offer presented to them, they have every right to accept, decline, or counter your offer. If they accept the offer as is, CONGRATULATIONS, you are officially under contract! If they decline, that means your offer is off the table, but you as a buyer have every right to make a different offer.
Now this is where things can sometimes get confusing for our clients. When a seller submits a counteroffer, what that means is they have essentially declined your original offer. At this point, now the ball is in your court! It’s now up to you to either accept, decline, or yet again submit another counter offer! Then the cycle begins again! This is where your REALTORs® negotiating skills really come in handy.
For us on the Kristin O’Brien Team here at Keller Williams in State College, we stand by the theory of making it a win-win for both parties or no deal. This is something that is deeply rooted in our approaches to making real estate deals work for our clients. And remember, every scenario is different and may require a different approach. Sometimes there are multiple offers on a single property, sometimes homes are bank owned, which adds an extra layer to the cake. Talk with your REALTOR®, ask for their advice and expertise, it’s what we are here for and it’s what we love to do.
