Strictly speaking, in England and Wales, a property marked as Sold Subject to Contract is still on the market in the sense that the sale is not legally binding yet. Most offers are agreed with an exclusivity period attached for a buyer subject to certain pre-agreed conditions, such as performance timeframes. Most sellers tend to stick with their purchaser if the sale is progressing smoothly. However, strictly speaking, pre-exchange the buyer and seller can both withdraw and the seller can still accept other offers. Estate agents are legally obliged to inform a seller of any offer at any point of the sale process. Whether the seller accepts an offer or not is entirely up to the seller.
Is a sold subject to contract property still on the market?
Technically yes, as nothing is binding until an exchange of contracts. However, this is dependent upon what has been agreed between the seller and buyer at the point of an offer being agreed and may not mean the property is actively available for sale.
If a seller feels a buyer is not performing or progressing the purchase to a satisfactory level they may wish to start viewings again or indeed they may not agree to cease actively making the property available for sale at the point of an offer being agreed until such a time a purchaser has shown financial commitment to the purchase.
What a seller weighs when a second offer arrives
The number matters, but a seller is also comparing a sale that is already part way through with one that starts at the beginning.
So yes, an extra ten thousand pounds has real value, but it has to be worth unwinding work that is already done. Accepting a late offer means a new contract pack, new searches, a new mortgage application and, often, a new chain to line up. The seller may also have a purchase of their own with a date attached to it.
The arithmetic changes when the sale itself is not moving. If enquiries have gone quiet, or the paperwork has stalled, or a mortgage application has to be started again, time becomes the expensive part. That is the point at which a buyer who can move quickly is worth more than a buyer who is offering more.
"If a further offer comes in once another offer has already been agreed, the level of offer is only one part of a series of points the seller will normally ask me. These points could be how well the current purchaser is performing or how far the current offer has progressed, and if the new offer a materially better buyer in terms of proceedability or in a stronger financial position."
James Stevenson,
Managing Director of Sales at Foxtons
Get ready before you need to be
Everybody involved wants the same thing, which is to be moved by the date they had in mind, and being organised is what gets you there. Whether you are in a sold subject to contract deal already, or you’re hoping to be, preparation is the part of this you control.
Instruct a solicitor while you are still viewing rather than after a price is agreed. Our conveyancing panel calls this being 'buyer ready', and it means the preliminary paperwork can start the day your offer goes in. Speak to a mortgage broker before you start looking, so an agreement in principle is there when you need it.
You could also register your interest and ask us to keep you updated, so you are already in the conversation if the property comes back to the market. It costs the sale in progress nothing.
Source: This article draws on the Foxtons Sales department, who work with London’s buyers and sellers every day to get the right deal done. If you have any questions on this article, email us to ask a Foxtons expert.
