What is the difference between pending and contingent in real estate

For a home purchase, a professional home appraiser typically evaluates the home inside and out to determine its fair market value. However, even with pre-approval, the lender may uncover additional information during underwriting , your financial situation may change for the worse, or mortgage rates may go up and make it harder for you to qualify.

In situations like these, you may be unable to secure a mortgage and, therefore, unable to buy the home. With Credible, you can find prequalified rates and generate a streamlined pre-approval letter in a matter of minutes. Find Rates Now. If the home inspection reveals significant issues, you and the seller can negotiate a solution to keep the deal intact. For example, the seller might make the necessary repairs or lower the purchase price by the estimated cost of the repairs so you can have the work performed after closing.

A kick-out clause goes hand-in-hand with a sale contingency, described below. A title search is an important part of any real estate transaction. A title contingency allows you to walk away if the title search reveals title defects that cannot be resolved.

A sale contingency allows you to exit the contract if you cannot sell your current home. Tip: You can avoid having to use a sale contingency by getting a bridge loan. The buyer might be having trouble obtaining financing, for instance. Whatever the case may be, this status indicates the seller is willing and contractually able to accept backup offers should the current deal fall through.

It means the seller has accepted an offer and is waiting for their lender to approve it. Pending — more than 4 months This is a self-explanatory status that means a property has been listed as pending for longer than four months.

If at all possible, before you make an offer on the home, try to arrange to view the home. If the seller wants your offer as a backup, they should agree to let you come see the home.

Including a personal offer letter alongside your offer that outlines why you want to buy their specific home is an extra special touch that goes a long way.

Now that you know what these different terms mean, you can move more confidently when you finally find a home you love, even if an offer has already been made.

Remember: It never hurts to ask. With Orchard, secure your dream home before you list. Avoid home showings, double mortgages, and double moves. All rights reserved. Get Started. Buying Your First Home.

What does it mean when a home is under contract? If the seller gets another offer that they want to accept, the buyer gets an opportunity to remove the contingency and move forward with the sale.

In this contingency, sellers accept an offer but can still field other offers for a period of time. If they prefer one of those offers to the initial one, they can give the accepted buyer a chance to match it.

If the buyer refuses to match, the seller can terminate the deal in favor of the new offer. Short sale. This means the process could take a bit more time. More than four months. An accepted offer that has been on hold for just as it reads more than four months. Taking backups. If the deal falls through, the sellers are now in a position to accept backup offers, and if a backup offer fits the bill for them, the sellers can pursue that sale.

You can make an offer on a home during any stage of the process. Real estate agents can help you navigate deals that are especially complex or challenging.