Don't like it; would rather my buyers did not get "pregnant" with this type of property.

My first reaction after reading would be to see if there are enough good properties to show without showing this one...and not bother.  There are some properties that are not in the best interest of my buyer client. 

If it is in the contract, than yes the buyer is bound to this.

If this however came up during negotiations, I would give the seller a short time limit to find a house...after all...how picky are they going to be? 

• What if they never find a suitable property?
• What if their seller also wants to find a replacement first?
• What if they can't qualify for the existing mortgage and a new mortgage?

Next please...

Eve

It was used years ago when the market was fast. Seller didn't want to put up home unless they had somewhere to go. We used to give them 2 weeks & it stated it in contract. If they did not find a suitable home, contract dead.

It might be different now as everyone must proceed with the home inspection & attorney review obviously, costing the buyers money for both.

Do they think the seller can find another home? Buyers choice on this & is obviously in more peril than the sellers.

I simply don't show the home... buyer wants to buy and to close. Who needs this kind of encumbrance?

the buyer's agent has choices!!  show it or pass on it.... on occasion, we have listings subject to the homeowner securing housing.... if it's a first time home buyer, they usually go for it.... when someone asks for something, they give something in return.... ask for time, and give a few thousand in equity!!

It's contractual if you put it in the contract.  We see it all the time here.

We use this all the time. We have a  hot market. Our sellers need to know they will not be homeless when they sell their home. Buyers agree to these terms and we successfully close.

If there is plenty of other inventory to show my buyer I will pass over this. If inventory is tight, I will check into the status.

Carla Muss-Jacobs, Principal Broker (503) 810-7192 This was quite common in my area. Sellers were afraid in a hot market they would sell their home and not have a place to live or be forced to purchase anything to close therefore the Home of Choice contingency.

1. If it is in the contract and agreed to it is.

2. Only if they agree to it in the contract.

3. Agree or look elsewhere.

4. No, usually the seller puts it in the contract.

5. It is a contingency if agreed to by all parties.

6. Sure if it an agreed upon term in the contract.

Ditto Sybil Campbell 

I run into that sometimes. We call it " HOC", or " Home of Choice". Some sellers are able to buy first, then put their home on market which works fine. But when trying to coordinate sales, by getting home you want to sell under contract, then going out to find HOC, many times those drag on and on and never work out. Other times, the buyers don't mind waiting. (1) yes (2) yes, (3) I explain the different scenarios (4) Yes (5) Everyone walks without penalty (6) yes

We see it all the time here.  Almost all offers come in conditional upon the Buyer selling their own home first so it evens out and is understood.

When I'm writing up an offer for my Buyers, I do not include the verbiage but warn my Buyers that it will most likely be countered with that inserted.   I let my Buyers know in advance, as in prior to showing, any home that this is included.  I allow them to make the decision.

But, as I said, pretty normal in my market.

It's called a home of choice contingency.  Quite common.  I had one last year where the seller wasn't going to move unless they got that one particular house.  Sometimes it's in the agent remarks, other times you find out during the offer.  I prefer it in the agent remarks, especially when it says home targetted (because the seller is under the gun to get their house sold).

Good question.  I guess it could be written up some way, but I would never allow this for any of the buyers I represent.

It depends on what the buyer wants to do. Some buyers are willing to wait for a home in some communities. It is like some buyers wait for a short sale. I do not like it. But buyers insist on seeing those homes and if we dont show these someone else will.

I always explain what it means first, let the customer decide and recommend we continue looking anyway

Typically, my first reaction is "red flag" especially if the market conditions reflect low inventory or if there is a lack of seller motivation.  In California there is a purchase agreement addendum where this issue is addressed.   

NEXT!

It's a sign of the times !!! The Middle Class is shrinking and many owners lack Equity to make their Next move !

Sounds like low inventory and seller is concerned if they sell their house they have no where to go.  Probably have an attorney draft an addendum that would protect both parties.

Usually, these remarks are in the Agent Only section and there will be an addedndum in the resulting contract dealing with this from the sellers.

I have seen this wording in the agent's remarks field, and usually think that house sale will be problematic and lengthy. If it's a good house for my buyers, I'll send it anyway and just let them know what the remarks indicated.

Find another home unless the client really is interested in this property.

Carla Muss-Jacobs, Principal Broker (503) 810-7192 - I have come across this - and surprisingly enough, few of them were okay to move with their in-laws or parents.

I do not discourage my buyers to preview these homes - though warn them for sure.

I would look at it as a very unmotivated seller and spend my time looking at other homes.

We actually have a picklist item that says in contract info, Home Choice.  There's a matching contingency in our local addendums.  

In agent to agent remarks, I've got one now that reads:  

"Owner would love Home of Choice contingency if your buyer will consider it. If not, perhaps a 60 day settlement? Make an offer and we'll figure it out."

Bottomline is that my sellers want an offer, but do want to put it out there that they would love a home choice contingency, or longer settlement time frame.

This is not uncommon in my area.  It was merely a comfort comment for sellers who have not already chosen a property.  I don't remember ever having a sale not go through as a result of this clause. They always found something within a few days.  I suppose it could if the inventory was very limited.   A deadline needs to be established.

I don't have a problem with it - few sellers go through the effort of getting their home ready to put on the market unless they are motivated to move- generally they are out there looking for a home while theirs is on the market - they just don't want to be homeless. 

We don't see it often and the property may not be the best option for the buyer, plus it makes the home potentially harder to sell since buyers may simply not want to deal with that situatuation. But if the seller must find a new home then the buyers needs to understand what this means and are OK moving forward, with appropriate terms and deadlines in the contract to protect them, and limit the time to find a new home.

LOl are you kidding?

My first reaction is to find another home, my second reaction is to call the listing agent for clarification.

I will still send this property to my client but I'll copy and paste the wording to an email to him or read it to him when talking on the phone.  Then it's up to the client whether he would like to proceed with the home. We will have to assume that seller will put in the contract once we submitted the offer so I want my client to be ready.  The bottom line is, it is the client's decision and not mine. 

I think the seller needs to be apprised as to how difficult that may make the sale of their home. Too many 'what ifs'.

Is this the only and best option for my buyer?

My 1st reaction is that I must be in a time machine and Professor Whoopee has sent me 35 years past in his Way-back Machine. That's how long it's been since having a clause like that included in a listing contract.

This is a concern in writing an offer

1. The intent is clear enough to put all on notice.

2. If they act on it

3. Just tell it like it reads

4. I would write my own verbage

5. We have plan b and or a c ready to go

6. It is in line to be mentioned

Hi Carla - My first reaction is "oh crap!" If the home looks like something my clients would be interested in, I'll follow up with a phone call to the agent, but I'm going to have a talk with my clients about the difficulty of finding two homes instead of one.

I think they really aren't sure if they want to sell or not.

I warn my buyer clients that we might have a challenge if they decide to write an offer.

Not a fan of it and may pass on showing it.

real estate is negotiable make it happen

We have standard clauses to handle these types of situations.  We don't put it in the MLS remarks.

Move on to another property.

It means looking at it can be a complete waste of time until the seller finds their new home

I saw this in our MLS the other day. I would talk with my buyers about the ramifications of getting involved with this situation. What if the seller never finds the home they want? That is the first question that came to my mind when I saw this in my MLS. 

There is little difference between this and 'contingent on sale of buyers house.'

"Contingent on Sale" or "House of Choice" can only lead to many more questions before the uncertainty can be known.

I would juxtapose the "HOC" to a Short Sale. Then ask the client, "Are you feeling lucky?"

It is a common occurence here and more times than naught the sellers do not move!