Can You Place a Verbal Offer in NYC? Here’s Why Not
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You can say a verbal offer out loud in NYC, but it rarely moves anything. Under New York General Obligations Law Section 5-703, a real estate sale contract must be in writing and signed to be enforceable. Sellers and listing agents both know this, and usually dismiss a verbal number outright.
We represent NYC buyers, and this shortcut consistently backfires. A serious, fully documented written offer is what actually gets read.
You can say the number; it just won’t move anything, and that’s the whole story in one line.
What does New York law say about oral real estate contracts?
Not worth the paper it was written on is the blunt truth about a verbal offer’s legal standing. Under New York General Obligations Law Section 5-703, a contract for the sale of real property is void unless it meets three conditions. It has to be in writing, state the price, and be signed by the party bound by it. Our pillar guide to negotiating in NYC covers the full path from an offer to a binding deal.
A verbal “yes” from a seller, even an enthusiastic one, creates no legal obligation on either side, a point Avenue Law Firm’s own explainer on verbal offers walks through in more depth, deal sheets included.
Why sellers and agents both prefer written offers
NYC’s competitive market means good listings move fast. Buyers who submit organized written offers, complete with a closing date, deposit, proof of funds, and pre-approval letter, get taken seriously. A verbal number next to a documented written offer isn’t really a contest.
| Offer type | What it signals to a seller |
|---|---|
| Written, fully documented | A serious, qualified buyer ready to move |
| Verbal, no documentation | Unclear commitment, hard to compare or trust |
| Written but incomplete | Better than verbal, still reads as less prepared |
Why do verbal offers fail for co-ops?
No board reads a number without a financial statement attached, and that’s the practical reality in NYC. Most NYC listings are co-ops, and boards reject buyers who don’t clear specific debt-to-income and post-closing liquidity requirements. A seller has no way to evaluate a verbal offer without an REBNY Financial Statement to back it up.
Sellers are especially cautious about restarting the sale process if a buyer later gets rejected by the board. A verbal offer, with no documentation to vet, is exactly the risk they’re trying to avoid.
Is a listing agent required to present a verbal offer
Yes, and most agents wish that rule didn’t exist, but they still have to follow it. Under NAR’s Code of Ethics, listing agents must present every offer, including verbal ones, objectively and promptly. That obligation doesn’t make verbal offers any more likely to succeed; it just means the agent can’t refuse to pass one along.
How a mishearing turned into an awkward phone call
$1,250,000 or $1,050,000, depending on who you ask, is exactly what happened on a real Bed-Stuy listing. A listing agent took a phone call from a self-described investor and understood the offer as $1,250,000. She relayed it to an excited seller, who accepted on the spot.
When the agent called back to confirm, the buyer said the real number was $1,050,000. Genuine mishearing or not, the agent’s credibility with that seller took a real hit either way. Most experienced NYC agents now ask for anything verbal to go in writing immediately, precisely to avoid this.
How to use an informal price hint before a written offer
A number you float, not a number you’re bound to, is the one legitimate use for a verbal conversation. Calling a listing agent to informally float a number before writing a formal offer can reveal real information. Say a unit is listed at $1,000,000 and you think it’s worth $950,000.
Floating $925,000 informally and hearing “that’s a non-starter, we’ve had higher offers already” tells you to open closer to $930,000 rather than $900,000. A reply like “are you financing, how fast can you close, send it over” signals real room to negotiate instead.
What we tell clients tempted to just call and ask
Fine as a scouting move, never as the actual offer, is the line we draw for every client. Use a phone call to read the room. Never use it as a substitute for the real, fully documented written offer that actually gets taken seriously.
As Georges puts it, “it’s all about the numbers and the execution,” and a verbal offer skips straight past the execution part. On average, our commission rebate returns roughly $22,000 at closing. Run your full numbers on the closing cost calculators before your written offer goes out.
Common questions
Can you make a verbal offer in NYC real estate? You can say it out loud, but New York law requires a written, signed contract for it to carry any legal weight, and sellers rarely take a verbal number seriously.
What does New York law say about oral real estate contracts? Under General Obligations Law Section 5-703, a real estate sale contract is void unless it’s written, states the price, and is signed.
Why don’t verbal offers work for co-ops specifically? Co-op boards evaluate buyers on financial documentation, not just price. A verbal offer gives a seller nothing to actually evaluate.
Is a listing agent required to present a verbal offer to the seller? Yes, under NAR’s Code of Ethics, though presenting it doesn’t make it any more likely to be accepted.
Is it ever okay to float a price verbally before writing an offer? Yes, as a way to informally gauge a seller’s flexibility. It should never replace a full, documented written offer.
Nicole Fishman Benoliel co-founded NestApple in 2017. She's a lawyer admitted to the New York bar - her law degree is from La Escuela Libre de Derecho in Costa Rica, with further study at IE Business School in Madrid and an LLM from Fordham in New York. She does not act in a legal capacity at NestApple; every client is referred to an attorney who handles real estate deals full time.
