Bidding on multiple homes (Cary: real estate, buying a house, neighborhood)

[nc4us]

We spent the last week looking at homes in Wake County.

There's an abundance of homes in our price point that we would consider buying. We wanted to submit multiple offers on several homes in an effort to feel out sellers and get the best deal we can.

However the agent who has been working with said we could not do this.

She told us we could only submit one offer at a time and had to put up significant "earnest money" with each offer to purchase. She said if an offer was accepted "you just bought yourself a house" or you would have to forfeit the earnest money deposit.

She said you can't make multiple offers unless your prepared to purchase multiple properties. She told me I would have to withdraw existing offers before submitting new offers on differing properties.

When I bought my last home we had no "buyers agent" I made offers and negotiated, when we came to a meeting of the minds we went into contract and we purchased the property.

I asked if all offers had to be submitted in writing or could she just call up the sellers agents and make "informal" offers, and I was told that was not how things are done.

Is this true?

I than had her write an offer and submit it and waited for a counter. Than I had her pull it and write one on another and did the same thing several times. The agent began showing her frustration and disinterest in continuing the process.

It seemed like a ridiculous waste of time to me as well, since it took days to accomplish what took me hours when I bought my first home with out the assistance of a "buyers agent".


I'm going to buy a house, and since it's my biggest investment I want the best deal I can get. I plan on being picky, and I plan on negotiating hard. Is there any thing wrong with that?

Any one have any advice on working with buyers agents and presenting multiple offers?

[sls76]

What if someone offered you a job and then told you your really didn't have it because the hiring manager offered the one position to six candidates?

ETA: We recently sold our home in Cary and we agreed on a price verbally through our realtors (buyers made an offer, we countered, they agreed and we saw the contract about 4 hours later). My agent knew the buyers' agent very well, though.

[jjg39069]

I'm not a real estate agent but I've never heard of anyone putting offers on multiple homes at once. An offer is a contract. The process you describe you'd prefer to go through just doesn't sound kosher to me.

[North_Raleigh_Guy]

I agree with your agent. Verbal offers are not common here. As a seller I would not put much weight in a verbal offer. Submit your offer in writing.

Why are you recinding offers? Did the sellers not get back to you? I worked with an agent and he would put a 24 hour drop dead clause on our offer so the seller would respond with a counter-offer very quickly.

I can understand your agent's frustrations if you are just testing buyers and making multiple offers on multiple homes to see which one will bite. I would focus on finding the house you want and moving forward with that one instead of the shotgun approach.

FWIW, your agent is correct about the one offer at a time. IF you submit two offers at the same time and both sellers sign the offer you just got yourself a contract and would be on the hook to purchase both homes.

[coltank]

You can submit multiple offers, but no one will take you seriously unless you submit in writing, and with an earnest money deposit. Otherwise it is just a bunch of talk. If you submit multiple offers, in writing, you can withdraw the others before they are accepted, but unless you are the first to convey, you could also be held to contracts on mulitple homes.

Your agent probably got frustrated b/c you don't seem to be very serious, and unless you are working with new homes, sellers probaly won't take you very serious either. Most resales in this area sell very close to their asking price. New homes may be a different story.

[Funky Chicken]

Originally Posted by nc4us

We spent the last week looking at homes in Wake County.

There's an abundance of homes in our price point that we would consider buying. We wanted to submit multiple offers on several homes in an effort to feel out sellers and get the best deal we can.

I'm going to buy a house, and since it's my biggest investment I want the best deal I can get. I plan on being picky, and I plan on negotiating hard. Is there any thing wrong with that?

Any one have any advice on working with buyers agents and presenting multiple offers?

Are the "multiple offers on several homes" on homes in the same subdivision or even in the same area? Just curious-After a week of looking most people would have narrowed it down to fewer than "an abundance of homes". If you "plan on being picky" how can you still have "an abundance of homes" on your list? If someone takes your first offer and you move in only to discover something about the home/location/neighborhood that you can't live with, did you still get "the best deal you can"?

[NoneOfThis]

I'll say this - I hope you never express interest in any home I'm selling! What you want to do is simply, around here, WRONG. You may find yourself owning an entire subdivision.

[saturnfan]

An offer becomes a binding contract unless revoked prior to acceptance by the seller, rejected, or expired.

Making offers simultaneously on multiple properties puts you on very thin ice.

Put a short expiration on each offer and be sure each expires before submitting another.

[PDXmom]

Originally Posted by jjg39069

I'm not a real estate agent but I've never heard of anyone putting offers on multiple homes at once.

This can be done in other states. I knew of this happening in Oregon. There when an offer is made and accepted the buyer has the inspection period (which is agreed upon by the seller & buyer) to back out for ANY reason. They can say they did not like the paint color or they just changed there mind. In 05 when the market was at it's peak, SEVERAL people put in multiple offers at the same time. These people usually were not deal seeking though (since it was a sellers market). Instead they were just hoping ONE of their offers were accepted. Back in the days of buyers getting out bid often.

OP, I asked similar questions to my NC agent. Pretty much everything your agent has told you is correct. In NC it's a VERY different ball game.

BTW, if your realtor has explained to you the NC real estate laws and how they apply to you, I would personally be frustrated with a client who submits and pulls contracts. In this state you are not going to be able to do what you did last time. It's just not legal. Unless, as your realtor said you are prepared to buy multiple houses.

[duhrambull]

Submitting multiple offers can be easily done without offending anybody.
Buying a house is your own business, the agent need to do whatever you ask him/her to do.


Simply put a contingency on the contracts that the buyer has the right to pick the best accepted offers by certain day.