A shortage of property for sale has resulted in the rising trend of properties only being available to purchase through a multi-offer situation. This is a confusing and stressful situation, particularly for first-home buyers.

A multi-offer sale is where more than one purchaser makes an offer to buy a property. Each potential purchaser has to prepare their offer and submit the offer by a deadline. The vendor and real estate agent will then review all the offers they have received and pick which they wish to accept or with whom to negotiate further.

A multi-offer situation is almost like a tender, except that there are no vendor's terms and conditions of tender and the purchaser sets their own terms and conditions. A purchaser has no opportunity to negotiate initially and must put their best offer forward in relation to price, conditions and settlement date. The higher the price and fewer conditions, the more attractive the offer looks to the vendor.

The nature of the multi-offer scenario and the very tight property market often results in purchasers leaving out important conditions in the agreement (that are there for their benefit) and overstretching themselves with their offer price. This is, potentially, a risky place to be.

If you are purchasing a property that's in a multi-offer situation, talk with us early so we can advise you of your risks and how to minimise them.