What does an Agent mean???

[nkosiek]

Am trying to buy into DVC via resale and was given the following quote from an agent about a listing, "has a pending offer on the property currently."

Does that mean they are signing a contract or that the offer is at Disney? I would think that having multiple offers would be good and that they'd let me send in an offer on said listing but they didn't. Help me understand.

 

[JimMIA]

Generally that wording means someone has made a offer, but the seller has not responded.

The process is offer, acceptance by the seller, and then a contract with deposit is executed. At that point, the contract is submitted to Disney for ROFR. If Disney waives ROFR, the balance due is submitted to an escrow account by the purchaser, closing documents are executed by the seller and buyer, and when everything is in order, the transaction is closed.

It's the same process you'd use buying a home, with the exception of ROFR.

 

[nkosiek]

Okay, that's what I thought. Wouldn't it behove a company to take the second offer and forward it on to the seller though? Suppose my offer is higher than the first? Doesn't the possibility of a bidding war help both seller and agent? I'm a bit frustrated by what appears to be the lackadaisical attitude of this particular agency.

 

[JimMIA]

Okay, that's what I thought. Wouldn't it behove a company to take the second offer and forward it on to the seller though? Suppose my offer is higher than the first? Doesn't the possibility of a bidding war help both seller and agent? I'm a bit frustrated by what appears to be the lackadaisical attitude of this particular agency.

It's not supposed to be about the company -- taking multiple offers benefits both the seller and prospective buyers...and a broker has legal and ethical responsibilities to both.

Without knowing the particulars of what you were offering, it's hard to say, though.
IF the pending offer is already higher than what you were going to offer, there wouldn't be much point in submitting it.

If the agent is lackadaisical NOW -- when they are trying to get your money -- I'd be very concerned about how they will be later. If you're not happy with the service you're getting, I'd move on.

 

[wordwitt]

Basically, what probably happened is the seller listed the contract at a certain price. Then a buyer made an offer-- at what price you don't know. The seller then accepted the offer. This means they have a deal, and a backup offer is only relevant if that deal falls through. It is not the time to continue a bidding war. Presumably, if the seller thought the original offer was too low then the seller could have chosen to not accept the offer and to see what other offers might come in.

When I called to put an offer on a contract, I told the broker I wanted to make a full price offer and he said, "Good, because I have four other offers that aren't full price on this one already." Clearly, in that instance, the seller was holding out for something better. Had the seller accepted one of the earlier offers, I would have been out of luck despite my willingness to pay full price. Again, once there's been an offer and acceptance, there is a deal, and the broker is respecting that deal. Which is how it should be.

 

[disfanforlife]

I am new to buying resale. But, this is what I was told when I made my offer at full price. He said that since I offered the full price he would write sale pending on the listing. If, I had offered less he would not have written that and other people in his office could have taken offers. In essence, he said he would email or call the seller with my offer and once they signed the papers it would go to Disney. If I were to have offered less than asking price he would present my offer to the sellers, but in the meantime, they could be presented with other offers as well.

 

[disbound09]

I am new to buying resale. But, this is what I was told when I made my offer at full price. He said that since I offered the full price he would write sale pending on the listing. If, I had offered less he would not have written that and other people in his office could have taken offers. In essence, he said he would email or call the seller with my offer and once they signed the papers it would go to Disney. If I were to have offered less than asking price he would present my offer to the sellers, but in the meantime, they could be presented with other offers as well.

That is how it should be. In another post I read where someone had offered 63 on 60 per pt listing because they had missed out on a couple others and were worried about it being taken in ROFR at 60. The market may be on the upswing?
Good Luck and keeping looking.

 

[JimMIA]

I am new to buying resale. But, this is what I was told when I made my offer at full price. He said that since I offered the full price he would write sale pending on the listing. If, I had offered less he would not have written that and other people in his office could have taken offers. In essence, he said he would email or call the seller with my offer and once they signed the papers it would go to Disney. If I were to have offered less than asking price he would present my offer to the sellers, but in the meantime, they could be presented with other offers as well.

Yeah, I think that is phrased pretty correctly.

Technically, three things are necessary for any contract -- verbal or written. There has to be an offer, there has to be an acceptance of an offer, and there has to be "consideration," which means something of value changing hands. In a real estate transaction, normally the consideration is the buyer making a deposit.

Again technically, the listing is actually the first real offer. The owner offers the contract for sale at a certain price. If a buyer accepts, by agreeing to pay the listing price and making a deposit, the contract is theoretically sold.

Same deal with an acceptance of an offer below selling price. The listing price is the offer, the buyer's lower offer is a counter-offer (and that can go back and forth several times), but once there is an acceptance at some price, the contract is theoretically sold.

If the seller fails to go through with the sale with a listing price acceptance, the real estate agent is owed the commission on the sales price. Unfortunately, that is not enforced often, and as a practical matter, collection would be difficult.

Likewise, if the buyer fails to go through with the transaction, they can and do lose their deposit. I have a "friend" here on the DIS who has had that happen, and has split the deposit with the broker.

 

[drusba]

Typically if there is actually a pending sale, meaning an offer has been made and accepted, the broker will put on the listing "sale pending." "Offer pending" should be used only when an offer has been made and there is no acceptance yet (they may still be negotiating price). The broker is required to submit all offers to the seller until there is a sale pending. That includes even if there is an offer on the table to pay asking price. Thus, a new bidder could get the sale by offering more than an existing bidder.