“How do I know which offer to accept” is becoming something of a frequently asked question. Houses and flats in Surrey are always in demand, and we’re seeing an increasing number of sellers receive multiple offers for their properties.

In this blog, we look at which offer you should accept, why the highest offer might not be the best offer, and the etiquette of gazumping.

I’m selling my house and I’ve received a range of offers. Should I just accept the highest offer?

In general, accepting the highest offer is a good idea. It will give you more money to spend on your next home, whether that’s the property purchase itself or fitting a new kitchen when you move in. 

However, before you accept the highest offer, it’s important to do your homework. 

Ask yourself:

1.        Is the offer realistic?

It’s important to consider whether the offer is realistic. Your estate agent will have valued your property at the start of the selling process – use that as your starting point. If you receive an offer that is considerably higher than the valuation, you should question whether the buyer is serious. 

2.        Is the buyer proceedable? Are they in a position to complete the purchase?

Another question to ask is whether the buyer is likely to be able to proceed with the sale. For example, their high offer might be a gamble and they have no confirmation that a mortgage lender will lend them the money to buy at that price. To avoid this, try and find out if the buyer has a mortgage in principle, which is when a lender has already assessed a buyer’s readiness to purchase a property. Find out more about mortgages in principle here.

You should take your own circumstances into consideration too. If you need to sell quickly, a cash buyer might be more useful to you than a high offer. A cash buyer might make a lower offer, but there won’t be a chain, and mortgages won’t be a consideration – two advantages that you should keep in mind. 

Which realistic offer should I accept when I’m selling property?

If you receive more than one realistic offer, all from proceedable buyers, you might struggle to decide which to accept. Obviously, if one is higher than the other, it makes sense to accept it. But if you receive more than one of the same value, the best solution is to ask your estate agent to ask for sealed bids. 

“Sealed bids” is when each potential buyer lets the estate agent know how much they’d be prepared to pay for the property, but without letting the other potential buyers know. You can then choose to sell to the highest bidder. 

What about gazumping? Can I accept a higher offer later on?

In theory, yes. This sometimes happens when another buyer comes into the process later and offers more than the buyer whose offer you have already accepted. This is called gazumping. While gazumping is not illegal in the UK, it can come with consequences. 

It is within your rights to accept this higher offer but bear in mind that it can cause problems for your original buyer and others in the chain. You should also note that if the conveyancing process has already started, you might have to pay a fine for cancelling the original sale. 

As with all high offers, it’s still important to check whether the new buyer is serious and proceedable before you accept the offer. Otherwise you could end up not selling the property at all! 

Sell property in Guildford with Cobbles

If you have property to sell, we hope you’ll consider Cobbles. Our experienced team have exceptional knowledge of the local property market and provide realistic valuations, meaning a great service for sellers – check out our Google reviews here!