Who Delivers Your Offer To The Seller?

Say you are a first timer in the real estate world. You have finally saved up the right amount. And now, you have found the ideal home for you. You start to ask yourself: “Wait, how do I send my offer to the seller?” Is it you, your agent, or someone else? This is important because it is going to affect how your offer is seen, received, and it might even influence how the negotiations would happen.

However, usually the real estate agent takes the lead, you hire them and they basically do the heavy lifting for you. They will act as your bridge between you and the seller. This bridge makes sure that the offer is presented clearly, professionally, and in a way that follows the proper rules. There are situations that may need only you, the buyer, where you can deliver the offer yourself, and this is FSBO or for-sale-by-owner property. This could be through email, a secure digital platform of your choosing, and the most traditional would be face to face. So yes, aside from FSBO, there is a proper way to hand in your offer and how it should be done.

What is a Real Estate Offer?

A real estate offer is a formal written proposal to the seller where it indicates how much you, as a buyer, is willing to pay and what terms are included in it. This offer, if accepted by the seller, will then be the basis of a legal binding contract which will guide both the buyer and seller up until the closing date.

Typically, an offer includes:

• The purchase price you’re willing to pay.
   
• Contingencies, which are conditions that must be met for the sale to go through. For example, a home inspection or financing approval.
   
• Closing date, which is when you plan to finalize the sale and officially take ownership.
• Earnest Money is an act of “good faith” to express how interested you are in the property.
   

Important note: Verbal offers aren’t usually considered valid in real estate, and they can easily lead to misunderstandings.

Who Delivers Your Offer?

1. Buyer’s Real Estate Agent

In most setting, it is the buyer who delivers your offer to the seller. Before the delivery, they will guide you on making a proper offer where it indicates every important details that come with an offer. Since they are buyers agent, they will represent you and your offer professionally ensuring that all the necessary documents or terms are properly indicated to protect the seller as well, not just the buyer. They will also handle the communications with the seller’s side and answers any questions on your behalf and this scenario is always better because you have someone to organize and act while you do other important things.

2. Direct Delivery by Buyer to Seller

Sometimes, especially in for-sale-by-owner (FSBO) properties, the buyer may deliver the offer directly to the seller. This is the only scenario where you are allowed to deliver the offer yourself because you are allowed not to have a buyer’s agent. The seller as well does not have their listing agent to facilitate the sale. In this case, you and the seller have eliminated the intermediaries thus, allowing you to deliver the offer yourself. This can be done by face-to-face, email, or secure platforms.

But, if you want to hire a buyer’s agent then you can definitely do so and you can also have them deliver the offer to the seller.

3. Attorneys

Sometimes, offers can be delivered by the attorneys to the sellers although less common, but not prohibited. Attorneys can draft and submit offers to make sure the terms meet the legal requirements especially in complex and high risk deals that is common in commercial real estate transactions.

Many contracts also include an attorney approval clause where they can approve the deal, request changes to the terms, or cancel it if it is necessary.

How The Offer Process Goes

1. Submission: The buyer’s agent submits the written offer to the seller’s agent.
2. Seller’s Response: The seller will accept or reject it.
3. Counteroffer: The seller accepts but has counteroffers like chaning the price, date and any other terms mentioned in the offer.
4. Signing of Contract: When both parties agree, they will then sign a legally binding purchase agreement.

How Offers Are Delivered

Once you’ve prepared your offer, the next step is getting it into the seller’s hands. How it’s delivered can affect how quickly it’s reviewed and how seriously it’s taken. There are several common methods:

1. Digital Delivery

Most offers today are sent through email or secure digital platforms. This is the fastes mode of delivery and convenient as well because it does not need to much effort to send your offer. You just have to have a properly written offer that you can send online. Real estate agents have tools or ways in sending offers using the internet and is also more secure keeping sensitive information safe and both parties can immediately access.

2. Physical Delivery

In some cases, offers are still delivered as hard copies, either by mail or by hand. This method is less common than digital delivery but may be used in markets that prefer traditional paperwork or for particularly important transactions.

3. Face-to-Face Delivery

You can personally hand in your offer to the seller if you want to make a good impression but it is not ideal if you are living far from the location of the property. If you choose to be there, your approach to the whole transaction may create a personal connection to the seller which increases trust and improve your chances of success.

Why Delivery Method Matters

The best method of delivery in today’s market is digital submissions. Not only is it fast and trackable but most of the available medium are very secure. A personal delivery will take slower and you will need something fast and efficient. But, no matter what method you choose, always keep in mind that the offer should be properly documented and the seller’s side confirms the receipt.

What if the Seller Ignores My Agent?

You can only hope that the seller will respond to your agent since you can’t really compel people to do as you wish. In your offer, it will be indicated when the offer expires but until then your agent can politely follow up to confirm if the offer was indeed received.

How Long Does It Take for the Seller to Respond?

It is just the same as communicating with regular people. Sometimes, if people are too busy, it may take them longer to respond. The same is true with sellers, especially when the property has received a lot of offers so, be patient and still make polite follow ups through your agent so your offer is reviewed.

Is It Okay to Submit Offers via Email or Text?

Sending an offer through text is not allowed. Because they are simply not a good choice for sending formal offers. They don’t provide the right structure for an offer and the paper trail needed to track official transactions. It can be useful for quick follow-ups and confirmations whether the offer has been received or not.

Emailing however, accepted. The purchase agreement which is signed and formal must be attached as a PDF, not just a text in the email. In the electronic signature laws, attachments are legally binding. It is best to call the receiver first to properly build rapport.

Can Multiple Buyers Submit Offers at the Same Time?

This happens every time when someone lists a property on the marketplace. The sellers will then have to filter-out the offers they least like. They will then choose he offer that best meet their terms or they may even request best-and-final offers from all interesed buyers. In a competitive market and a very appealing property, it may take time for the seller to review all the offers.

Can I Change or Withdraw My Offer After Submitting It?

Yes, you can change or withdraw your offer, but there are rules and timing considerations. Most offers include contingencies and deadlines that allow for revisions or cancellations before the seller accepts. If you need to make a change, it’s important to notify the seller or their agent in writing as soon as possible to ensure it’s legally recognized. 

Think twice before making changes or cancellations when the seller has already accepted your offer because this may lead to the forfeiture of your earnest money. It could also result in legal action since the agreement has already been legally binding from the moment the seller signed and agreement.

Another way that the buyer may withdraw from the transaction is when it is indicated in the agreement itself that if one of the contingencies are not met, then they can simply walk away without any issues whatsoever.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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