Expert: Dick Dennis - 10/13/2008

Question
My husband and I decided to put an offer on a home that had been on the market for 6 months with no offers.  The home is in an estate being handled by an estate lawyer in our state.  The family is in another state (CA).  

We wrote up our offer and it was presented on Friday morning to the listing agent.  Later, we learned from our agent that the estate lawyer was out of town.  We also learned that the house was scheduled for an open house the following day (Saturday) and that the agent was obligated to do the open house because there had been an ad placed in the local newspaper.  

It's Monday now and our offer has finally been handed off to the estate lawyer but I am wondering...if there had been an offer made at the open house - would our offer be presented first or alongside any new offers?  

We have always bought and sold "By Owner" with no issues.  This has been our first agent experience and thus far we are realllllly frustrated by the slow response time.  We miss the days of a handshake and a trip to the bank!  :-)

Anyway - I'm just curious - thanks in advance for your response!

Answer
Welcome to the professional world of real estate, Patricia. I'm sorry you have never had an previous experience with real estate agents. If you had, you may not have written your question.

First of all, attorneys are infamous for "not being available" just at the right time. I really think that is part what they are taught in law school. It is a very common ploy in negotiation. Further, there is no law that says your offer had to be addressed in your timely fashion. If you want a prompt reply, you should dictate it IN WRITING on the offer. You give a deadline. I'm a broker here in CA, but it's a good thing you do not live in TX. They really give you the runaround there.

The listing agent who "was obligated to hold the open house" technically has no obligation to you. His or her obligation is to obtain the best transaction for the seller. The more offers there are on the property the better it is for the seller. So, if another offer was made anytime during the weekend or even today, the listing agent is obligated to present ALL THE OFFERS to the seller (or in this case the attorney).

As far as handshakes in real estate are concerned, you had better forget it. Those days will never return. And if you sell your next house yourself, I strongly recommend you get any and all offers in writing. "If it is not in writing, it was never said" is a strong adage in real estate. If you ever have a dispute over what was said there is no court in the land that would back you up because of your verbal understanding. Remember, I've been a broker since 1971 and I have been around a few corners. I hope you do well.

Dick Dennis        dixiedee13@aol.com