How do I compare offers on my house?
The price is the headline, not the story. Put each offer's money, conditions, and timing in the same places, one at a time, and read them side by side with what each one nets.
Who is offering
A name, or 'the couple from Saturday'. Whatever tells them apart. Cash closes faster and has no appraisal; a loan brings a lender and a deadline.
A name, or 'the couple from Saturday'. Whatever tells them apart.
Who you or your agent will be talking to.
Cash closes faster and has no appraisal. A loan brings a lender, an appraisal, and a deadline.
A name, or 'the couple from Saturday'. Whatever tells them apart. A lower offer with fewer ways out is sometimes the one that closes. Only you can weigh that.
Part 1 of 4
How do I compare offers on my house?
Work out what each offer nets you first: the price, minus any credit they ask for, minus any buyer's agent fee they want you to pay. Then set the conditions beside that number: cash or a loan, which contingencies they keep, whether they have to sell first, and when they want to close. The offer that nets the most is not always the one most likely to close, and only you can weigh that.
Part 2 of 4
Every term in an offer, explained
The same terms the panel above asks for, and why each matters. Beside each, what your offers say so far.
Who is offering
Who you or your agent will be talking to.
Cash closes faster and has no appraisal. A loan brings a lender, an appraisal, and a deadline.
The money
The headline. Not the whole story.
Closing-cost help or a repair credit. Comes straight off what you net.
Since 2024 this is an ask in the offer, not a given. A percent of the price.
Their deposit. Bigger says more serious; it is not extra money for you unless they walk without cause.
A larger down payment tends to mean a sturdier loan and less risk at the appraisal.
If the appraisal comes in low, how much of the gap they promise to pay in cash. Zero if not offered.
The conditions
Whether they can walk or renegotiate after an inspection, and how many days they have.
Whether a low appraisal lets them walk.
Whether a denied loan lets them walk with their deposit.
If they have to sell first, your sale waits on theirs.
The washer, a home warranty, a rent-back, a longer close.
The timing
Sooner is not always better. It has to work for your move.
At closing, or a few days after. A rent-back gives you time and gives them a landlord.
How long you have to answer.
Your notes
Anything the numbers don't say.
Part 3 of 4
Side by side
Once an offer has a price, every term reads across here with what each nets first. Nothing on it says which to take.
Part 4 of 4 · where to read next
Questions people ask about offers
How do I compare two offers on my house?
Start with what each one nets you, not the price: the offer price minus any credit they ask for and minus any buyer's agent fee they want you to pay. Then put the conditions beside that number: how they're paying, whether they can walk after the inspection or a low appraisal, whether they have to sell their own home first, and when they want to close. A lower offer with fewer ways out is sometimes the one that closes.
Is a cash offer always better?
Not always. Cash closes faster and skips the appraisal, which removes two ways a sale can fall through. But a cash offer is often lower, and a financed buyer with a large down payment and an appraisal gap promise can be nearly as sturdy. It depends on the numbers and on how much a fast, certain close is worth to you.
What is an appraisal gap?
If the buyer's lender appraises the home for less than the offer price, the lender only lends against the appraised value. The gap is the difference. Some buyers promise in the offer to cover some or all of it in cash; without that promise, a low appraisal usually means renegotiating or the buyer walking.
Does the earnest money count as extra money for me?
Not usually. The deposit is applied to the buyer's purchase at closing. It only becomes yours if they back out without a contingency that lets them, and even then the contract says how that goes.
Arithmetic, not advice
Keighbor is a software company, not a law firm, brokerage, or tax adviser. This is general information, not legal, tax, financial, or real estate advice about your sale. Your situation may differ. Before acting on a contract, disclosure, title, tax, or pricing question, ask an appropriately licensed professional in your state.
Written and researched by Keighbor Research · how we research and check what we publish
One piece of your sale. Here is where all the pieces live.
When you say yes, the rest of the sale starts.
A Keighbor room keeps each offer as a buying side with its terms in the note, holds the contract dates you or your agent add on the sale's calendar, and explains the inspection, appraisal, title work, and closing in general terms as you reach them. Keighbor doesn't read or interpret the offer.