You never know what to expect when you put your home on the market and designate a date for offers because anything can happen. My clients put their home on the market on Wednesday and sold it on Monday, which was the offer date. You might appreciate this behind the scenes rundown of how things played out so you’ll have a better idea of what to expect when you’re in the market.

Showings started immediately after the house went on the market on Wednesday. Offers were going to be considered on Monday. While the sellers ended up receiving 4 offers, which sounds fairly straightforward, the route taken was anything but direct. More scenic, I’d say, because at times we thought there may be as many as 6 offers or as few as 1 offer. Here’s how the offers came to be:

Offer 1 – This buyer saw the house on Thursday. His agent called me on Sunday to say that she had an offer. She also told me that he hadn’t signed it yet and was going to the bank on Monday morning to discuss financing. Translation: she didn’t have an offer yet, but expected to have one. She said she’d call me Monday morning after her client signed the offer. I told her we would be considering offers at 6 pm on Monday evening. She eventually called me at 4:30 pm on Monday to say she had a signed offer, but would only be available to present it around 7 pm. Usually, agents know that if offers are stipulated to be at 6 pm, they’re at 6 pm, but sometimes it pays to be flexible.

Offer 2 – This buyer saw the house Monday afternoon at 3 pm. His agent called me at 5:30 pm to tell me that his client had signed an offer. He was clearly a very decisive buyer.

Offer 3 – This couple saw the house on Friday. I received a call from their agent at approximately 5:30 pm on Monday telling me that they had just decided to put an offer in and that, because of the short notice, he’d only be able to get it signed at 7 pm. At that point, I spoke to my clients and we decided to delay the presentation of offers until 7:30 pm since it would be to their benefit to do so and the other agents seemed to prefer it. (All the other agents except for me, that is. I was tired. It was a long day. But I always do what’s best for my clients.)

Offer 4 – This buyer saw the house for the first time  on Saturday. Her agent contacted me on Sunday to say that her client was interested. She then called me numerous times on Monday to enquire as to whether there were any other offers and to tell me that her client had yet to decide if she wanted to submit an offer. She eventually called me Monday evening at 8:30 pm to let me know that she would be emailing an offer to me immediately. By that time, my clients had already decided to accept another offer. You snooze, you lose, but in this case her offer was not as high as the other offers anyway so her tardiness was not  the deciding factor.

Non-Offer 5 – These buyers saw the home on Saturday and then again on Sunday. Their agent called me on Monday at 5 pm to tell me that they would be making an offer and that he could be at the home to present it at 7:15 pm. He then called me back at about 6:30 pm and said that his clients had changed their minds – they didn’t want to get into a multiple offer situation, but if my clients were willing to accept an offer for list price, they’d be willing to pay it. I told him I’d let him know if that was the case. With 3 other offers likely at that time, it was highly improbable that list price would be enough.

Non-Offer 6 – These buyers also saw the home on Saturday and Sunday. They liked it a lot, but didn’t want to make an offer if there were going to be other offers. They said they’d wait until Tuesday and if the home didn’t sell on Monday, they’d make an offer.

All this happened BEFORE we even looked at an offer. What happened later in the evening when we looked at and negotiated the offers is a whole other story!

So what can you learn from all this that you might find helpful:

1. Be organized and don’t leave things for the last minute. Go see a home as soon as it comes on the market so you’ll have more time to think about it and do any research you need to do to make a decision. Sellers prefer to sell their homes to buyers they are confident will close. Being organized helps to inspire that confidence.

2. When you’re buying, make sure your agent is organized, as well. Remember, your agent is representing you to the sellers. If he or she appears professional, it will help your cause.

3. When you’re selling, make sure your agent is capable of orchestrating and juggling everything that is likely to happen so that everything falls into place nicely. Here’s what my clients had to say about what happened: “Thanks for everything tonight.  I realized that I wasn’t as freaked out about everything tonight as I might have been because I have such faith in you and that you will do the right thing for us.” Music to my ears.

4. Understand that anything can happen at any point in time because we’re  dealing with people and their emotions. When you’re selling, be prepared for 5 offers,  but also be prepared for no offers. Also, don’t worry if you don’t have any offers by 5 pm. Things can change in an instant. When you’re buying, be prepared to be the only offer and also be prepared to be 1 of 5 offers. Generally, regardless of whether you’re buying or selling, don’t let anything get you flustered. Stay flexible and open minded because the landscape is constantly shifting. Read my Real Estate Yoga blog entry if you don’t understand what I’m getting at.

5. There are plenty of things you can do to give yourself every possible advantage in a multiple offer situation. Check out my blog entitled Win The Bidding War for more details.

So how did things turn out on this episode of Survivor, Real Estate Style? Don’t worry, I won’t leave you hanging. Offer 2 was the victor. His offer was clean (which means it had no conditions), his price and deposit were good, the closing date was to my clients’ satisfaction and his agent represented him in a way that made us feel confident in his ability to close the transaction down the road.