I’ve been getting into multiple offer situations more than ever (really!) and my buyers keep getting this language that says submit your  “highest and best” offer.  My buyers hate it.  I hate it.  But is it ethical?  Yes it is!

Read this from the REALTOR Magazine:

Q. I was in the middle of negotiating an offer on behalf of buyers I was representing. We had submitted a counteroffer in writing to the listing agent and we were waiting for a response. Suddenly, the listing agent contacted me and told me that there were multiple offers on the table. She said her seller instructed her to tell us that we needed to make our “best and final offer” by a certain time that day. This doesn’t seem fair to me. I feel the sellers should have completed negotiations with my buyers before considering another offer. Is the listing agent in violation of the Code of Ethics?

A. No. Considering several offers at the same time or asking one or more potential buyers to make their “best and final” offer by a specific deadline doesn’t violate the Code. The listing agent and the seller had the right to ask that your buyer submit a “best and final offer.” While individual sellers may use that practice infrequently, it seems more common in situations requiring a quick sale, such as relocations and properties sold by lenders. Because these properties are often attractively priced, they can generate multiple offers. Standards of Practice 1-6 and 1-7 of the Code address offers and counteroffers. Standard of Practice 1-6 provides “REALTORS® shall submit offers and counteroffers objectively and as quickly as possible.” Standard of Practice 1-7 states, “When acting as listing brokers, REALTORS® shall continue to submit to the seller/landlord all offers and counteroffers until closing or execution of a lease unless the seller/landlord has waived this obligation in writing . . .”

Red the rest of the answer here:  http://tinyurl.com/cmnslg