What Does "Under Offer" Mean?

"Under offer" means a seller has received an offer on their property and is considering it, or has accepted it in principle, but the deal is nowhere near legally binding. In England and Wales, nothing is fixed until contracts are exchanged. A property marked "under offer" can still be viewed, can still attract rival bids, and can still fall apart at any point before exchange with no legal penalty for either side. It sits one rung below "sold subject to contract" on the ladder of commitment – a promising signal, not a done deal.

If you've been browsing Rightmove and keep seeing that little "under offer" flash on listings you like, you're right to be slightly confused. Agents use the phrase loosely, and it means different things in different windows of the country. Let's clear it up properly, because misreading it costs buyers viewings they should have booked and costs sellers momentum they didn't know they were losing.

What "under offer" actually signals

Strip away the estate-agent gloss and "under offer" tells you one thing: money has been mentioned and the seller is interested. Someone has put a figure on the table, and the seller either likes it or is close to liking it. The listing hasn't been withdrawn, the sale board might sprout an "Under Offer" slip, and the agent quietly stops pushing quite so hard for new viewings.

What it does not tell you is whether the deal will hold. And that gap – between "an offer exists" and "the sale is safe" – is where a lot of buyers and sellers get caught out.

Here's the part people miss. In England and Wales there is no legal contract at this stage. A verbal acceptance, a handshake, an email saying "yes, we accept" – none of it binds anyone. The seller can accept a higher bid the next morning. The buyer can reduce their offer after a survey, or vanish entirely. Solicitors call the whole pre-exchange period "subject to contract" for a reason: everything is provisional until the moment contracts are formally swapped.

So treat "under offer" as a weather forecast, not a guarantee. It suggests the property is heading towards a sale. It promises nothing.

Under offer vs sold subject to contract (SSTC)

These two get used almost interchangeably, and that's a mistake. They mark different stages, and the difference matters if you're a buyer deciding whether to bother viewing.

"Under offer" is the earlier, looser stage. An offer has come in; it may or may not be formally accepted; the property is usually still being marketed. "Sold subject to contract" is the firmer stage: the seller has accepted, the property is typically taken off the market, and the machinery of the sale – solicitors instructed, searches ordered, survey booked, mortgage application progressing – is grinding into motion.

A useful mental model: "under offer" is the flirting stage, "sold STC" is the engagement, and exchange of contracts is the wedding. Only at the wedding does anyone become legally committed. Plenty of engagements are called off – roughly a quarter of them, in fact, which we'll come to.

One honest caveat: agents don't apply these terms consistently. Some firms mark a property "under offer" the instant an offer lands; others skip straight to "SSTC" the moment it's accepted and never use "under offer" at all. If in doubt, ring the agent and ask the only question that matters: "Has the seller accepted, and is the property still open to offers?"

Under offer, but should you still enquire?

If you're a buyer and your dream house says "under offer" – call the agent anyway. This is one of the most common mistakes I see. People assume "under offer" means "gone" and scroll past. It doesn't.

Because the property is usually still on the market and nothing is legally settled, a serious buyer can and sometimes should register interest. You might ask to be kept informed if the current offer falls through – and remember, one in four do. You might, in a competitive situation, make a higher offer. Whether the seller entertains it is up to them and their conscience, but there's no law stopping you.

Which brings us to a word every UK buyer and seller should understand.

Gazumping – and gazundering

Gazumping is when a seller accepts a higher offer from a new buyer after already accepting yours, before contracts are exchanged. It's legal in England and Wales, it's infuriating, and "under offer" properties are exactly where it happens. If you've had an offer accepted but haven't exchanged, you are exposed to it.

Gazundering is the reverse: a buyer reduces their offer at the last minute, often days before exchange, gambling that the seller is too committed to walk. In a flatter market – and 2026 has been flatter than the frenzied years – gazundering has become more common, because buyers no longer fear prices running away from them.

Both are symptoms of the same underlying fact: until exchange, the price isn't real. "Under offer" is precisely the window in which both tricks live.

How long does "under offer" last?

There's no fixed clock, but here's a realistic shape of things. A property might sit "under offer" for a few days to a couple of weeks before it firms up into "sold STC". From accepted offer through to completion on a normal open-market sale, you're typically looking at 16 to 24 weeks – roughly four to six months – and that's when nothing goes badly wrong.

Why so long? Because the boring machinery takes time: local authority searches, the buyer's mortgage valuation and formal offer, the survey, enquiries between solicitors, and – if there's a chain – every other transaction in that chain moving at the pace of its slowest link. A property being "under offer" for weeks isn't necessarily a red flag. It's often just conveyancing being conveyancing.

A worked example: what "under offer" is really worth

Let's make this concrete. Say you're selling a three-bed semi in the Midlands listed at £280,000.

• Week 0: A buyer offers £272,000. You accept in principle. The agent marks the listing "under offer". You feel great. You start browsing your next place.
• Week 3: The buyer's mortgage valuation comes back at £268,000 – the surveyor won't support the price. The lender will only lend against £268,000. Your buyer asks you to drop £4,000. This is a soft down-valuation, and it's more common in a flat market where surveyors are cautious.
• Week 7: You've agreed £269,000 to keep the deal alive. Then the buyer's own sale wobbles – their buyer pulls out. Your chain has a hole in it.
• Week 9: The chain can't be rebuilt fast enough. Your "under offer" sale collapses. You're back on the market, nine weeks older, and the listing now carries the faint whiff of "why did that fall through?"

None of this is unusual. It's the ordinary risk baked into every "under offer" that hasn't reached exchange. The £272,000 you celebrated in Week 0 was never money in the bank. It was a number on an email.

Now weigh that against the alternative. A genuine cash buyer typically offers in the region of 75–85% of market value but removes the survey risk, the mortgage risk, the chain risk and most of the timeline. On a £280,000 home, that's roughly £210,000–£238,000, with completion possible in 7 to 28 days. Whether that trade-off is worth it depends entirely on your circumstances – which is the honest heart of this whole subject.

When "under offer" is fine – and when it isn't

If you have time, the open-market route that produces an "under offer" then a "sold STC" is usually the right call. It's how you achieve full market value. Most sellers should start here. The provisional, non-binding nature of the early stages is a feature, not a bug – it gives you room to change your mind, negotiate after a survey, and keep your options open.

But "under offer" is a poor fit in specific situations. If you're facing repossession and the clock is running, a sale that might take four to six months and might collapse is not a plan – it's a hope. The same is true if you're dealing with a probate deadline, a divorce that needs clean separation of assets, a job relocation with a hard start date, or a chain that has already broken once and left you exposed.

In those cases, the certainty of a slightly lower guaranteed price can be worth far more than the theoretical top price you might get eventually, maybe, if nothing goes wrong. Be honest with yourself about which situation you're in.

How to protect yourself while "under offer"

Whether you're the buyer or the seller, the pre-exchange window is where deals are lost. A few things genuinely reduce your risk:

• Instruct a solicitor early. The single biggest cause of slow, wobbly sales is conveyancing that starts late. Have your solicitor ready before you even accept.
• Get the paperwork together now. Title documents, FENSA certificates, building regs sign-offs, guarantees, the completed TA6 and TA10 forms. Every document you can hand over on day one is a week you don't lose later.
• Keep talking. Chains collapse in silence. A weekly nudge from your solicitor or agent catches problems while they're still fixable.
• Consider a lock-out agreement. For a fee, a seller can agree an exclusivity period during which they won't accept other offers – a modest defence against gazumping.
• Don't over-commit emotionally. Until exchange, keep a cool head. Don't book removals or hand in notice on your rental against an "under offer" that hasn't firmed up.

Under offer in Scotland – a different animal

If you're buying or selling north of the border, throw out most of the above. Scotland's system is genuinely different. Offers are submitted formally through solicitors, and once an offer is accepted and "missives" (the contract letters) are concluded, the deal becomes legally binding much earlier than in England and Wales. Gazumping is far rarer as a result, because backing out after conclusion of missives carries real legal and financial consequences.

So "under offer" on a Scottish listing sits within a system that hardens into commitment far sooner. Don't assume the loose English meaning applies.

How to check a buyer is actually real

An offer is only as good as the buyer behind it. Before you get excited about being "under offer", ask the agent to confirm:

• Proof of funds. A mortgage agreement in principle, or – for a cash buyer – recent bank statements or a solicitor's letter confirming cleared funds. "Cash buyer" gets thrown around loosely; a real one can prove it in writing.
• Position in the chain. A first-time buyer or a genuinely chain-free buyer is worth more than a higher offer trapped behind three other sales.
• Is the "cash buyer" a company? If you're selling to a house-buying firm, a legitimate one will be a member of the National Association of Property Buyers (NAPB) and registered with The Property Ombudsman (TPO), giving you an independent complaints route if things go wrong. Any offer above roughly 85% of market value from a "cash buyer" deserves a hard look – that's often the sign of a low-ball to follow, or a firm that isn't a true principal buyer at all.

We keep a plain-English breakdown of the genuinely reputable firms on our best house buying companies page, and you can sense-check any figure against a proper house valuation before you decide anything.

Frequently asked questions

Can I still make an offer on a house that's under offer?

Yes. In England and Wales, "under offer" carries no legal weight and the property is usually still on the market. You can register interest or make a higher offer. Whether the seller accepts it – potentially gazumping the first buyer – is their decision, but there's nothing stopping you from trying.

Does "under offer" mean the house is sold?

No. It means an offer has been made and is being considered or has been accepted in principle. The sale isn't legal until contracts are exchanged, which is typically months away. Around a quarter of agreed sales never complete at all.

Is "under offer" better or worse than "sold STC"?

"Sold STC" is a firmer, later stage – the offer is accepted, the property is usually off the market, and conveyancing has started. "Under offer" is earlier and looser. Neither is legally binding until exchange, but "sold STC" is closer to the finish line.

Can a seller pull out after accepting an offer?

Yes, right up until exchange of contracts, with no legal penalty in England and Wales. Likewise the buyer can withdraw or renegotiate. That mutual freedom is exactly why the early stages are called "subject to contract".

How long can a property stay "under offer"?

Anywhere from a few days to several weeks before it firms into "sold STC", then typically 16–24 weeks from accepted offer to completion on a normal sale. Delays usually come from searches, mortgage processing, surveys and chains rather than anything sinister.

What's the fastest way to avoid the "under offer" limbo altogether?

Selling to a genuine cash buyer skips the mortgage and chain risk and can complete in 7–28 days, but usually at 75–85% of market value. It's the right move when speed and certainty matter more than squeezing out the last few thousand pounds – and the wrong move when you have time to wait for the open market.

Why "under offer" sales fall through

Let's put a number on the risk, because it's the single most important thing to understand about this stage. Industry tracking of agreed sales through 2025 and into 2026 put the fall-through rate in the region of 22–24% – roughly one in four sales that were agreed never made it to completion. That figure has stayed stubbornly high as the market has cooled.

So why do they go? A handful of causes account for most collapses. Chains break when one link somewhere pulls out and the failure ripples down. Mortgage valuations come back below the agreed price and the buyer either renegotiates or can't cover the shortfall. Surveys throw up problems – damp, subsidence, a dodgy roof – that spook the buyer or the lender. Buyers get cold feet, change jobs, split up, or simply find somewhere they like better. And every so often, gazumping or gazundering knocks the whole thing sideways.

Here's the cruel part: many of these failures happen late, deep into the transaction, after both sides have already spent money on solicitors, searches and surveys. A sale that dies at week ten costs everyone far more than one that never started. That's why treating "under offer" as a finish line is such an expensive habit.

The common mistakes to avoid

After years of watching sales stall at exactly this stage, the same errors come up again and again. Avoid these and you'll be ahead of most people in the chain.

Assuming "under offer" means safe. It doesn't. Don't hand in your rental notice, don't book the removals van, and don't emotionally move out until you've at least exchanged contracts. Plans built on a non-binding offer are plans built on sand.

Leaving the paperwork until asked. The seller who has their title documents, guarantees, certificates and completed forms ready on day one routinely completes weeks faster than the one who goes hunting for a FENSA certificate in week eight. Speed protects the deal, because the longer a sale drags, the more chance something breaks it.

Not qualifying the buyer. An offer from a proceedable, chain-free buyer with a mortgage agreed in principle is worth far more than a higher offer from someone three sales down a fragile chain. Chase the certainty, not just the number.

Going silent. Sales rot in silence. If you haven't heard anything in a fortnight, something is usually stuck. A quick weekly check-in with your solicitor and agent catches problems while they're still small.

The bottom line

"Under offer" is a hopeful signpost, not a destination. It tells you a deal is being discussed; it guarantees nothing until contracts are exchanged. For buyers, it's an invitation to enquire, not a reason to give up. For sellers, it's a moment to instruct your solicitor, gather your paperwork, and keep your feet on the ground until the sale is genuinely safe.

If the uncertainty of the open market doesn't suit your timeline – because of repossession, probate, divorce or a broken chain – a guaranteed cash sale trades a slice of price for a great deal of certainty. If you're not sure which path fits, our team at Ready Steady Sell, led by founder Lisa Hayes, has spent years helping homeowners make exactly this call without the sales pressure. Start by getting the jargon straight on our property jargon explained guide, weigh a fast sale on our sell house fast and cash house buyers pages, and check the numbers against our industry data. Whatever you decide, decide it with your eyes open.