Ah, exciting: you’ve bid on a property. But how long does it take to get a response from the selling broker?
It depends on the situation.
Registration or not?
First, we need to know how you bid. Did you submit your bid together with several buyers because there was a bidding deadline? Then we call that a
A registration is often used when there is a lot of interest in a property and several people are likely to want to bid. In most cases, after the bidding deadline has passed, the seller wants to sell the home to the bidder with the most interesting offer.
Is a property for sale without a deadline and you make a cautious offer, say €20,000 below the asking price? Then it is quite possible that the sellers will not respond immediately. They often wait a few days (or longer) to see if a better offer comes in.
Do you make a very strong offer, say €50,000 above the asking price, and set the condition that you want a response by 10 a.m. tomorrow morning? Then chances are that you will actually receive that response within your specified time frame.
Fun or non-fun sales determine response time
In addition to how you bid, what kind of sale is involved also plays a role. With homes sold by tender, we usually see multiple interested parties. But even then, response times can vary.
The maxim:
With a great sale, you often get feedback on your offer the same day, or no later than the first business day after.
What is a “nice sale”?
By a “happy sale,” we mean that the seller is still alive, has bought another home of their own, and simply wants to sell their current home in order to move. We usually refer to this as a “happy seller.
It is a situation with no added complexity: no deaths, no divorces, no bank that needs to be involved. This allows us to move quickly.
With a great sale, that’s why you often get a response as early as the day of bidding, or no later than the next business day.
What is a “miserable sale”?
The counterpart of a nice sale is the miserable sale. These are situations where the home must be sold because of less pleasant circumstances, such as divorce, death or financial problems that require the bank to arrange the sale.
Miserable sales, in practice, are mostly divorce and death cases.
- In a divorce, sellers are often no longer aligned, so it takes longer to agree on an offer.
- When a death occurs, there are often several heirs who must consult together before making a choice.
The result: it can take just a few business days-sometimes up to about a week-before you get feedback on your bid.