Posted on May 13, 2015 in Buying, The Industry
You thought you left the bullies behind at the jungle gym, right? Outgrew those antics and became a mature person?
Then someone came and scooped your dream home before the offer date of next Tuesday. What the what?!?
You just got bullied. Another buyer flexed their muscles, budded in line and asked the house to the dance with an offer they couldn’t refuse while you were still rehearsing your killer pick-up line.
Bully offers are nothing new, but something new that we’ve been seeing lately is the line “seller reserves the right to consider pre-emptive offers” in the brokerage remarks (the fancy part of a listing that only agents can see).
Let me make three things very clear:
- If an offer is registered, the seller must be informed about it.
- Even with a set offer date, in writing, the seller has the right to change their mind. Always has. They own the property.
- The seller can, upon hearing there is an offer, refuse to look at it as per their original directions.
What does all this mean? Well when Nick and I first started seeing this phrase in listings, he summed it up quite simply: “So, you’re inviting bully offers?”
Bully offers aren’t new. We’ve made them. We’ve received them. They happen.
Why the addition of this line now? Probably hurt feelings (or a lawsuit). If there’s a bully then there’s a victim. In this case the victim(s), and there are often many, is/are the potential buyer(s) who didn’t get to make an offer and their agent went to bat for them, arguing with the listing agent who “allowed” the bully through.
The line covers the listing agent’s behind, sure, but it also shifts the emphasis on how offers can be received. In this market virtually every freehold home has a set offer date and without one you’d likely have to see the house the day it’s listed to even have a shot at it. But by adding this line it’s a welcome invitation to anyone who wants to take a swing at buying a property regardless of the offer date.
What’s needed isn’t a line about considering pre-emptive offers but a more transparent system for buyers and sellers alike so everyone knows the rules, no one gets hurt and the person who wins wins fairly. Everyone wants to go to the dance, and it hits us right in the feels when a client gets spiffed up and then finds out the bus left without them. Fortunately we have cars, can drive you there and will help you present your best, even if the date’s a moving target.
Meet you at the monkey bars?
Photo credit: Source / Public domain
