Present all Offers Forthwith

Just a quick reminder that you are legally obligated to present all offers to the seller when received (Code of Ethics states “as quickly as possible”, Mass Law states “forthwith” with a legal meaning of immediately; promptly; without delay; directly); … unless your seller gives you lawful instruction to do otherwise.  We have heard that agents are looking at a contract and telling the buyer’s agents that they will not present it without a preapproval letter, without a specific preapproval, unless they remove terms from the special conditions or shared that they would be holding the offer until a later time.  The only situation in which a real estate professional is exempt from presenting an offer to a seller is if the seller client has provided an explicit instruction to the agent to not present offers that do not meet certain criteria, such as a minimum price.   Please note that a seller might agree upon a strategy to wait until a set time to consider/decide all offers, but it doesn’t necessarily relieve you of your obligation to present offers as they are received unless expressly indicated (and check with your broker…many require that direction to be in writing for safety sake).  With technology, it’s a simple thing to make sure your seller is fully informed every step of the way and discussing options and strategies with you – and you are not making decisions for them.