First Time Buyer - How Long Does the Offer Process Take?

darrinm81

Hi,

When placing an offer to purchase a property, how long does it usually take to get a response from the seller?

I have made an offer but have not heard anything back from the seller (it has been 48 hours). The agent tells me they cannot get in contact with the seller?

Should I be concerned? Or is this legitimate? Why would the agent or seller delay the process?

Can I legally make an offer on another property and walk away from this current process (even if offer is finally accepted)? From what I have read it is only legal once contracts are drawn up/signed....

Confused!

Yorkie1

48 hours is a little nerve-wracking but I wouldn't worry for another 48 hours. Then I'd ring up the EA and find out what's going on. They may have been expecting other offers and want to see what happens there before responding to you.

Yes, you are not legally bound to this property until contracts are exchanged. You can put an offer in on another property, but think about the impact on those sellers whose houses you don't eventually proceed on - they will have had their hopes raised, possibly taken the house off the market, and started / continued their own ongoing move process. Don't mess them around unless you really have to (I'm not saying that's your intention but that's how it might feel to them).

KateLiana27

We had an answer back the same day for both properties we offered on (actually after a couple of hours for each). Within 24 hours is fairly standard. Longer would make me think they are holding out for a better offer and may be more gazumper-friendly than I would like.

Out of courtesy, I wouldn't offer on another house until you have withdrawn your offer on this one (to avoid getting peoples' hopes up etc). However it is definitely reasonable to time-limit your offers. I would call up the estate agent and let them know your offer stands for 24 or 48 more hours only, and then will formally be withdrawn. Not being able to contact the seller for days on end is not a good sign. What are they going to be like through the rest of the (2-3 month) buying process?

Of course, this is assuming you do not mind walking away. If it's the house of your dreams, you might choose to wait for them.

darrinm81

I was expecting the whole process to take less than 24 hours with the likelihood of some counter offering.

I have spoken to the agent since making the offer. He says they cannot contact the seller. Maybe I am being paranoid and thinking the agent and/or the buyer are stalling for higher bids? The property was only listed within the past week - so stalling may well be a strategy to test the market.

As stated by another poster, my concern is that even if this goes ahead, how quickly will the seller be with other parts of the buying process?

I guess I just have to sit patiently for another day or so!

G_M

My god people are strange. Most women I know take at least that long to shop for a new dress. Costing £50!

This is a multi thousand pound deal and you want a decision in 24 hours? Qhite apart from the seriousness of the decision, they might have other viewings booked and want to see if they lead to other offers. They might want to discuss with partner/parents/friends. They might be away. They might....... anything!

Be patient. If it's a reasonable offer it will be considered and responded to in due course. If it's a "let's try 20% less and see what happens" offer, they'll put it on hold while they try to get a better one.

womble12345

I would say that the delay means that the vendor is uncontactable and you wouldnt want that days before exchange... I suspect they may also go incommunicado at another time later in the process so it would provide a warning to me of a not entirely motivated seller.

ChrisEvanson

G_M wrote: »

My god people are strange. Most women I know take at least that long to shop for a new dress. Costing £50!

This is a multi thousand pound deal and you want a decision in 24 hours? Qhite apart from the seriousness of the decision, they might have other viewings booked and want to see if they lead to other offers. They might want to discuss with partner/parents/friends. They might be away. They might....... anything!

Be patient. If it's a reasonable offer it will be considered and responded to in due course. If it's a "let's try 20% less and see what happens" offer, they'll put it on hold while they try to get a better one.

I disagree. If you put your house on the market, you should be ready to go. You should surely have in mind what you will or wont accept, and in the current climate, any offer should be dealt with swiftly and efficiently. Granted 24-48 hours isn't particularly long but I have to say when we had 4 days out of the country we ensured the EA's had keys and that we were contactable.

On the day we had our offer we were waiting (and had been for weeks) to offer on the house we wanted, and over the following 4-5 hours, after rejecting the first offer and accepting an increased one, and having bumped our offer twice, we secured the house we wanted and sold ours stc.

If there are sellers out there thinking they can make a buyer wait for days then they are damned foolhardy, because if that prospective buyer has just accepted an offer on their property, they may have more than one property in mind and you may lose them (as the op seems to testify)

Pupnik

I don't think 48 hours is too bad, especially considering half of that time was a Sunday. We put our offer in on a Friday morning and didn't hear back until Monday lunchtime as the vendor went away for the weekend and the EA couldn't get hold of her. Give it another day, but I agree with the other posters that it could be good to give them a time limit. If this place isn't one you especially love and there are others out there that meet your criteria then make sure they are aware that you could easily take your money elsewhere.

darrinm81

Thanks for the opinions. Seller has finally come back and after some back-and-forth accepted an offer....

timmyt

ChrisEvanson wrote: »

I disagree. If you put your house on the market, you should be ready to go. You should surely have in mind what you will or wont accept, and in the current climate, any offer should be dealt with swiftly and efficiently. Granted 24-48 hours isn't particularly long but I have to say when we had 4 days out of the country we ensured the EA's had keys and that we were contactable.

On the day we had our offer we were waiting (and had been for weeks) to offer on the house we wanted, and over the following 4-5 hours, after rejecting the first offer and accepting an increased one, and having bumped our offer twice, we secured the house we wanted and sold ours stc.

If there are sellers out there thinking they can make a buyer wait for days then they are damned foolhardy, because if that prospective buyer has just accepted an offer on their property, they may have more than one property in mind and you may lose them (as the op seems to testify)

Totally agree, a seller wants an offer and once contacted (OP did say they were having problems reaching) they should say yes or no stright away.