Accepting Offers

Hard negotiation is all part of the making and accepting of an offer. You may find having to 'haggle' frustrating, but it is part of the process of getting the price you need for your property.
Try to find out if the buyer has offers in on any other properties. If you receive a lower offer than you wanted and may turn down their offer if you get a better one - this is called 'gazumping' - tell them so. It is quite legitimate for you to say you will accept an offer less than your asking price until a better offer comes along. You can also place time limits on your acceptance if you need to move quickly; if you need to exchange within two weeks, make sure your buyers know that. Always be direct with buyers. Remember that you will not be able to 'gazump' once you have exchanged contracts. To do so could result in costly legal action.

You Can Change Your Mind

Even if you have accepted an offer, there is nothing in law to prevent you from changing your mind and accepting a higher offer from someone else. You should also bear in mind that when an offer is made and accepted the potential buyer can also withdraw, for example, they may not get a mortgage, or the survey may show up some structural problem.

Make sure you keep the names and addresses of all potential buyers who make offers, in case the one you accept falls through

When You Have Accepted An Offer

Take the details of buyer, the name, address and phone number and the details of buyer’s solicitor, their name, address and phone number and pass these details on to your solicitor.