Who Delivers Your Offer to the Seller? Rarely the Buyer

We represent NYC buyers, and this step trips people up because it feels like it should be more formal than it is. There’s no courthouse filing, no notarized handoff, just an email doing the actual work.

Your agent’s inbox, not your own hands, is where most NYC offers physically go.

Who actually delivers your offer to the seller

Whether the seller has an agent decides who receives your offer. If they do, your agent sends it to the seller’s agent, who reviews it with their client. If the seller has no agent, your agent delivers it directly to the seller; the same mechanics.

Without your own buyer’s agent, you’re the one preparing and sending the offer, which we don’t recommend. Our pillar guide to negotiating in NYC covers why representation changes how a bid gets read on the other side.

If one agent represents both you and the seller, that’s a dual agency arrangement. They still deliver your offer, just to themselves acting for the seller.

What actually goes in the delivery

One email, not a folder full of forms, is what an NYC offer actually moves as. It includes your price, deposit amount, closing date, any contingencies, and either an REBNY Financial Statement or proof of funds. A short personal note from you can accompany it, though it never substitutes for the numbers.

Can a listing agent refuse to accept an offer?

Not their call to make before the seller sees it, no matter how low the number looks. A listing agent can advise their client to reject an offer, but withholding it entirely is a different matter. NAR’s own Code of Ethics requires agents to submit every offer objectively and promptly, not just the ones they’d have made themselves.

If you have a real reason to think your offer wasn’t shown to the seller, raise it with your agent and your attorney right away. That includes a stronger offer you submitted later. Ask the seller directly if you can. This is rare, but when it happens, it’s worth escalating rather than assuming the deal is simply dead.

How long does it take to get a response from a seller

No, the clock doesn’t start just because you hit send is the honest answer. There’s no legal deadline anywhere, including New York, that requires a seller to respond to an offer. In a building fielding multiple offers, a response can take anywhere from a day to over a week.

If you haven’t heard back and it’s been a while, ask your agent to follow up rather than assume silence means rejection.

Can you back out after delivering an offer?

Yes, right up until both attorneys sign off, is the short answer. That’s what makes NYC different from states with a signed offer form that locks a buyer in earlier. Delivering an offer, even one the seller verbally accepts, isn’t binding on either side. The deal becomes binding only once the buyer’s and seller’s attorneys have drafted, reviewed, and countersigned the actual purchase contract.

Be careful about signing anything the listing agent hands you beyond a basic offer letter. A form written to include binding contract language can expose you to real risk if you try to walk away later. That’s exactly the kind of document your attorney should review before you sign it, not after.

What happens after you make an offer

The waiting game, and not much else, until someone answers, describes most of what follows delivery. The seller’s agent presents your offer, and the seller weighs it against any other offers on the table. Then you wait for a response: acceptance, a counter, or silence.

Once you do hear back, our guide to what happens after the seller accepts covers the next stage in detail, from attorney review through closing.

What we make sure happens before your offer goes out

Every document attached, so nobody has an excuse to sit on it, is the standard we hold every offer to before delivery. A missing pre-approval letter or an incomplete financial statement gives a listing agent a reason to set your offer aside. A cleaner one, submitted at the same time, gets read first instead.

As Georges puts it, “it’s all about the numbers and the execution,” and delivery is where a well-prepared offer either gets taken seriously or gets lost in the pile. On average, our commission rebate returns roughly $22,000 at closing. Run your full numbers on the closing cost calculators before your offer goes out.

Common questions

Who delivers your offer to the seller in NYC? Your buyer’s agent delivers it to the seller’s agent, almost always by email. Without a buyer’s agent, you deliver it yourself, directly to the seller or listing agent.

Can a seller’s agent refuse to show an offer to the seller? No. They can advise against accepting it, but withholding it from the seller entirely isn’t within their authority.

How long does a seller have to respond to an offer? There’s no legal deadline. Response times range from same-day to over a week, especially when multiple offers are involved.

Can I back out after my offer is delivered? Yes. Nothing is binding until the buyer and seller’s attorneys sign the purchase contract, which typically takes several business days after an offer is accepted.

What happens right after I submit an offer? The seller’s agent presents it, the seller weighs it, and you wait for a response. If accepted, the deal moves into attorney review next.

Written by Nicole Fishman Benoliel

Co-founder of NestApple and a lawyer admitted to the New York bar, not currently practising.