Bidding process when buying a home

Things to keep in mind

• It is up to the seller to decide who will purchase their real property and at what price. The seller has no obligation to sell to the party with the highest offer.

• An offer made by a potential purchaser is not a binding contract. It is not until when both the seller and the buyer have signed a sale and purchase contract that the purchase agreement will be legally binding.

The seller decides who can buy

It is always the seller who decides who can purchase their property and at what price. The seller has no obligation to sell to the party with the highest offer nor at the price stated in an advertisement.

The seller can change the selling arrangements or cancel the offering for sale at any time, even in the middle of an offering process.

What is the procedure for the bidding process?

There is no law that determines how a bidding process should work. The seller decides together with the estate agent how the bidding will be conducted and how long it will last. However, the estate agent must always inform the prospective buyer of the bidding process. The estate agent must also communicate all bids to the seller. This also applies if the prospective buyer makes an offer in a manner other than that agreed upon.

This is often referred to as open bidding. This means that the prospective buyer is told what the highest offer is and can then overbid by submitting an offer above that.

There is also the possibility of a closed bid procedure. In such a situation, the prospective buyer is given a certain amount of time to submit their offer, which is usually given in writing. The estate agent then passes the offers on to the seller. The potential buyers are not told what the other interested parties have offered.

Offers can be made in any of a variety of ways, for example by telephone, SMS or e-mail. Estate agents’ websites often provide information on how offers on their listings are presented and how any bidding process is conducted.

No agreement is concluded until a purchase and sale agreement is signed

An offer is not binding on any of the parties. It is not until when the seller and the buyer have reached an agreement and signed a purchase and sale agreement that the purchase becomes binding on the parties. Prior to that, either the seller or the buyer can change their minds without the other party being able to make any claims for compensation or demands to proceed with the purchase.

When you gain access to the apartment the estate agent must provide the buyer and seller with a list of the offers submitted. The list is to contain the names of the persons who have made an offer, their contact details, the amount of the offer, the date of the offer and any conditions attached to the offer.

Would you like to learn more about the submission of offers and the bidding process?

You can learn more about the rules for submitting offers at the Swedish Estate Agents Inspectorate.

About tendering offers on the website of the Swedish Estate Agents Inspectorate (In Swedish)