On a Friday in late May, sitting on the terrace, the owner had three offers on a house that had been on the market for two years without moving. Some details are changed to protect privacy, but the real decision is what counts.
The difference between the highest and the lowest offer was 145,000 euros. The middle offer was the oldest, from an international buyer with pre-approved financing and a lawyer who had already reviewed the dossier. The highest came from an individual without mortgage in place who asked to delay signing by six months to sell another house.
What really weighed
What decided the owner wasn't the figure, but the risk of not reaching signature. A higher offer with a six-month timeline introduces variables that can destroy value: rate changes, buyer's mind changing, a competing property surfacing, an unexpected family event.
What could have been lost
If the operation had collapsed at five months, the property would return to the market labelled "the buyer fell through", a perception the next buyer only pays for with a discount. It would have cost more than the theoretical 145,000 euros on the other side.
Accepting the best offer means choosing the buyer who will likely sign, not the one who promised more on paper.
Three questions worth asking on any offer
- What stage is the buyer's financing in and who backs it?
- Has their lawyer reviewed the dossier and raised concrete questions?
- What is the realistic timeline between deposit and signing, and why?