In a perfect world, you write your offer, the seller accepts it, and you celebrate. Yaaaassss, Queen or King Homebuyer, you did it!
However, as we all know, the world is far from a perfect place, and your offer might not rise to the top of the heap. What happens then? Your offer could be rejected outright. Sad face. You might receive a counter offer — issued just to you, with the seller’s desired combination of price and terms. You can accept this or issue a counter back to the seller. And so on.
You might also receive a multiple counter offer, which is exactly what it sounds like: a counter offer issued to multiple potential buyers. The Great Big Difference (™) about a multiple counter offer vs. a single counter offer is that you can decide sign it and you will NOT be in contract; the seller has the right to pick the best offer among the buyers’ responses and only that buyer is the winner.
We’ll guide you through the thicket of negotiations — always explaining exactly where we are in the process, what your options are, and the way forward. Once we’ve reached a meeting of the minds with the seller and all the paperwork is in order, you’ll be in escrow.
What is Escrow?
Escrow is a legal process whereby a neutral third party holds something of value…wait, hold on a sec while I translate this from legalese to normal-people-speak. Let’s try this again: Escrow is the neutral third party that handles the process of you buying your property. Your escrow officer will handle all of your loan paperwork, your money (initial deposit, down payment, closing costs, and funds from your lender), the seller’s side of the transaction (paying off their loans, reporting their proceeds, etc.), and perhaps most important: recording the deed that gives you ownership of your new home.
Jackson Fuller agents work very closely with the escrow officer and your mortgage broker to make sure that you’ll meet your contract deadlines and close escrow on time.
Congratulations! At this point you’ve ratified a contract, opened escrow and are now ready to delve deeper into understanding the condition of your future home, allowing you to make a more educated purchase.
Incredibly Important Disclaimer: We are Realtors, not attorneys, nor do we play them on TV! We are not qualified to give legal advice. If you want to talk real estate law with someone with a law degree, we can give you the names of several qualified, local real estate attorneys.