Sandeep Pawar
Broker
Home / Sell / Offers for sellers
Comparing offers on your home: a seller’s guide
How to judge an offer on more than price: conditions, deposit, financing risk and dates. Plus how competing offers work in Ontario, and your choice about disclosing offer details.
The short answer: the best offer is the one most likely to close at the best net result for you. Compare price, conditions, deposit, financing strength, closing date and inclusions together. In Ontario, your brokerage must tell each buyer how many competing written offers there are. Sharing what those offers contain is your choice.
What an offer contains
In Ontario, an offer is usually written on an Agreement of Purchase and Sale. Every term in it is negotiable, and once you both sign, it is a binding contract.
| Term | What it means for you |
|---|---|
| Price | The headline number. It only matters if the deal closes. |
| Deposit | Money the buyer pays toward the price, held in trust. It is your main protection if the buyer fails to close. |
| Conditions | Things that must happen before the deal is firm, such as financing, inspection, a lawyer’s review or the sale of the buyer’s home. |
| Closing date | The day ownership and keys change hands. It must work with your next move. |
| Irrevocable time | How long you have to accept before the offer lapses. |
| Inclusions and exclusions | Which appliances, fixtures and rentals stay or go. Vague wording causes closing-day disputes. |
| Other clauses | Extra visits before closing, vacant possession, tenant terms, warranties about the property. |
Comparing offers side by side
A hypothetical example. Both offers are on the same home with a $950,000 asking price.
| Term | Offer A | Offer B |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $985,000 | $970,000 |
| Deposit | $20,000 | $60,000 |
| Conditions | Financing and inspection, 7 days | None |
| Closing date | 30 days | Your preferred date |
| Buyer’s position | Pre-approved | Pre-inspected, financing arranged |
Offer A pays $15,000 more if it closes. Offer B is firm from the moment you accept, has a larger deposit, and fits your next move. Which is better depends on how much risk you can carry. It also depends on what a second buyer would likely pay if Offer A fell through.
Conditions and how much risk they carry
| Condition | What the buyer is checking | Your risk | How to reduce it |
|---|---|---|---|
| Financing | That a lender will approve the mortgage on this home. | The lender’s appraisal comes in low, or the buyer’s approval falls through. | A short deadline, proof of pre-approval, a larger deposit. |
| Home inspection | The condition of the structure and systems. | The buyer asks for a price cut or walks away. | A pre-listing inspection, offered to buyers before offers. |
| Lawyer’s review | The agreement, or a condo’s status certificate. | Usually low, if documents are ready. | Have the status certificate or key documents ready early. |
| Sale of buyer’s home | That the buyer can sell their current home first. | High. Your home is tied up while theirs is on the market. | An escape clause that lets you keep marketing and accept another offer. |
Expecting offers soon? Know your number first.
What’s my home worth?From offer to firm deal
Receive and review every offer
Ontario’s rules require your agent to convey any written offer to you as soon as possible. You see every one.
What happens
Offers arrive by email, usually with the buyer’s deposit details and any pre-approval letter.
What you do
Read each one with me, line by line. Confirm the price, deposit, conditions, dates and inclusions.
Documents and people
Each Agreement of Purchase and Sale and its schedules.
Watch for
Clauses that change the deal in small print, such as a long condition period or an unusual inclusion.
How I help
I put every offer into one comparison sheet, with the risks of each term explained in plain language.
Accept, decline or sign back
You have three choices for each offer. In competing offers, you can also ask buyers to improve.
What happens
You accept as written, decline, or sign back with changed terms and a new irrevocable time.
What you do
Decide your priorities first: price, certainty, or dates. Then set your response.
Documents and people
Signed offers or sign-backs, initialled at every change.
Watch for
Signing back several buyers at once without understanding the legal risk. Ask your lawyer first.
How I help
I negotiate price, deposit, conditions and dates together, as a RENE-certified negotiator. How I negotiate.
Collect the deposit
The deposit is usually due within a set time after acceptance, as written in the agreement.
What happens
The buyer delivers the deposit to the listing brokerage, which places it in trust.
What you do
Confirm with me that it has arrived on time.
Documents and people
Deposit receipt, held in the brokerage’s trust account.
Watch for
A late or missing deposit. It can be a breach of the agreement.
How I help
I confirm receipt and tell you immediately if anything is late.
Conditions to firm
If the offer has conditions, the buyer works through them before the deadline.
What happens
The buyer inspects, arranges financing or has documents reviewed, then signs a waiver or notice of fulfilment.
What you do
Allow access for the inspection and appraisal as the agreement says.
Documents and people
Waivers, notices of fulfilment or any amendment.
Watch for
Requests for a price cut after the inspection. You are not obliged to agree, but the buyer may walk away.
How I help
I keep every deadline on one calendar, and advise you on any renegotiation with the comparable sales in hand.
How competing offers work in Ontario
When several buyers want your home, you set the rules: an offer date, a deadline, and how offers will be presented. In a strong market, some sellers hold offers to a set date so every buyer has time to view and prepare.
- Your brokerage must tell each buyer who has made a written offer how many competing written offers there are
- You may accept one offer, sign one back, decline them all, or ask everyone to improve
- You can accept offers before your offer date if you choose, and buyers can submit early offers
- Verbal offers do not count toward the number disclosed. The rule refers to written offers
Your disclosure choice under TRESA
Since 1 December 2023, under the Trust in Real Estate Services Act, sellers can choose whether competing buyers learn what the other offers contain. The choice is yours, and you can choose to share only some parts.
| Approach | What buyers learn | Consider when |
|---|---|---|
| Do not share details (default) | Only the number of competing written offers. | You want buyers to put their best offer forward without anchoring to others. |
| Share some parts | The parts you choose, such as price or conditions, without any identifying information. | You want to show buyers the bar they need to clear on one term. |
| Share the substance | The substance of the competing written offers, without personal or identifying information. | You want an open process and buyers to compete on full information. |
A buyer who made an offer can ask RECO’s registrar to confirm how many written offers were received. If you directed your brokerage to share offer details, the registrar may also disclose the parts you chose to share. Either way, no buyer’s name or identifying details can be shared. We decide your approach before the listing goes live, so every buyer is treated the same way.
Offer night checklist
- Your bottom line, set in private before offers arrive
- Your acceptable closing date range
- Your disclosure choice, in writing
- Your mortgage payout estimate, so you can see the net figure for each offer (see selling costs)
- Your lawyer’s contact details, in case an offer needs a quick review
- Every owner on title available to sign
Offer mistakes I see sellers make
- Choosing the highest price with a weak financing condition, then losing the buyer and the time.
- Ignoring the deposit. A small one gives you little protection.
- Accepting a closing date that does not fit the next purchase.
- Leaving inclusions vague, then arguing about light fixtures on closing day.
- Deciding how to handle offer details after offers arrive, instead of before.
More in seller mistakes to avoid. Buyers’ side of the same process: multiple offers for buyers.
Questions sellers ask about offers
Do I have to accept the highest offer?
No. You can accept, decline or sign back any offer. A slightly lower offer with no conditions, a larger deposit and the right closing date can be the stronger deal. Compare the whole offer, not just the price.
Can my agent tell buyers about the other offers?
Your brokerage must tell every buyer who has made a written offer how many competing written offers there are. It can share the substance of those offers, or parts of them, only if you direct it to. It must never share any buyer’s personal or identifying information.
What is a sign-back?
A sign-back is a counter-offer. You change terms such as price, deposit or closing date, sign it, and return it. The buyer can then accept, decline or sign it back again. Once you sign back, the buyer’s original offer is no longer open to you to accept.
What is an irrevocable time?
It is the deadline written in the offer for you to accept it. Until then, the buyer usually cannot withdraw it. After it passes, the offer lapses if you have not accepted.
How big should a buyer’s deposit be?
There is no fixed amount set by law. A larger deposit shows commitment and gives you more protection if the buyer fails to close. Your brokerage must place it in its trust account within five business days of receiving it.
What happens if the buyer’s financing condition fails?
If the condition is not waived or fulfilled by its deadline, the agreement usually ends and the deposit is returned under the agreement’s terms. You then go back to market. This is why the length and wording of conditions matter.
Can I accept a backup offer?
Yes, a second offer can be accepted as a backup that only becomes active if the first deal ends. The paperwork needs to be drafted carefully. Speak with your lawyer before accepting one.
Sources
- Ontario e-Laws: O. Reg. 567/05 under the Trust in Real Estate Services Act, 2002 (sections 17, 22.7, 22.8 and 22.10: deposits in trust, competing offers, conveying offers)
- Ontario e-Laws: Trust in Real Estate Services Act, 2002 (section 35.1: written offers and registrar inquiries)
- RECO: TRESA explained
Know what your home should sell for before offers arrive
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