What about this horrible scenario? You're out going to open houses and you find THE perfect house. You call your realtor (or you tell your realtor that this is the one since they're with you), and in the time it takes to put together an offer, the sellers have already accepted another offer!
WHAT?? In today's housing market, the good homes priced right go FAST!! How are you supposed to deal with that?
Or what if there's a short sale or bank owned house that's been sitting empty long enough for the yard to have knee high grass, but you've been wanting a home in this neighborhood and you're willing to fix it up. But when you go to make the offer, you find out there's already an offer under contract. How's a buyer supposed to survive this process??
There is another option not many people know about.
Most buyers are not aware that there is an Addendum called the “Back-up Contract Addendum”. It is used when a property is already under contract. In this situation the seller and you (who would be Buyer #2) create a contract with the assistance of your Realtors. If the first buyer falls through, you become the primary contract.
It may sound like a long shot, but contracts do fall through all the time. If you have the time and flexibility, becoming the back-up contract may be an option for you. This obviously doesn't work if you have to move next week, but if you have the time, you may just get lucky!
Happy House Hunting!