A Higher Offer Was Already on the Table. Why Didn’t the Listing Agent Make One Phone Call?
When selling a home, the first acceptable offer isn’t necessarily the best offer.
Imagine receiving two offers on your home.
One buyer offers a higher price but needs to sell another property before completing the purchase. The second buyer offers substantially less but doesn’t have that contingency.
Which offer should you accept?
Many sellers might initially prefer the second offer because it appears less complicated.
But what if the first buyer could eliminate the contingency?
That’s where experienced negotiation becomes especially important.
Before recommending that the seller accept the lower offer, a proactive listing agent could contact the higher bidder’s agent and ask a simple question:
“Can your buyer remove the sale contingency and compete with the offer we’ve received?”
That one telephone call might result in a substantially better offer for the seller.
The buyer might have access to bridge financing, other assets, or alternative funding arrangements that weren’t part of the original offer.
Of course, the seller is not obligated to wait, and the highest price is not always the strongest offer. Financing certainty, contingencies, closing dates and other terms all matter.
But there’s a significant difference between knowingly choosing a lower offer after exploring the alternatives and accepting one without discovering whether an existing higher bidder could improve the terms.
A good listing agent presents offers. An excellent listing agent also recognizes opportunities to improve them.
In California, a listing agent owes fiduciary duties to the seller, including loyalty, reasonable care and disclosure of material information. Although there is no universal legal requirement to invite previous bidders to compete, proactive communication can be an important part of effective representation.
Before accepting an offer, sellers should ask their agents:
“Have we contacted the other interested buyers to see whether they can improve their offers?”
Sometimes the difference between an acceptable sale and an exceptional one is a single telephone call.
Clara Duran Reed
The Duran Reed Firm | REALTORS®
California Real Estate Broker & Attorney
Palos Verdes Specialist | SRES | SRS
DRE #01396050
(310) 519-7670
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