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If you put this in writing, and they accept, that is offer and acceptance. This is done all the time by the way with houses. Someone puts an offer out to the s

If you put this in writing, and they accept, that is offer and acceptance. This is done all the time by the way with houses. Someone puts an offer out to the seller, they accept, that's it, you are under contract. Alternatively, sellers can offer or counter offer to buyers. In this case sellers will say, here is my offer, when buyer accepts, you are under contract. Same thing with engagement letters for professional services. Signed proposed engagement letter presented to buyer (usually with an expiration and a few outs), buyer accepts, now you have a contract.

akvadrako 4y ago
It is in writing; wtf do you mean?
car_analogy 4y ago
There's offers and then there's binding offers - I assume it must be made very clear if an offer is binding before it is legally treated as such.
- tempnow987 4y ago
  This is entirely false. There's been plenty of litigation in this area. If you offer $230K, the other party accepts, then you are done. You can sometimes rescind before acceptance. Email Contract Safety Tips Since the validity of email contracts is generally accepted under the law, it is important to exercise caution when doing business through email. To that end, the following tips may be helpful: A contract need not be physically signed to be agreed to. A contract may be created over a series of emails, not just one. In some instances, a preliminary email may constitute a binding contract regardless of it referencing a future formal agreement that has yet to be agreed to. Beware of creating an “implied-in-fact” contract, which may occur through industry custom and your conduct. Beware of using certain terms unless you intend their meaning. If certain conditions are desired before entering into a contract, state them clearly. Do not create the impression of a meeting of the minds if that is not the intent.
- mr_toad 4y ago
  It’s not wise to make assumptions about how the law works when there’s money on the table.
deleted 4y ago
[deleted]
site-packages1 4y ago
I think the difference here is between what contract law states under common law and what people imagine it to state. I agree it feels weird to say hey I offer you X for a house and you accept then we're under contract. It's such a big purchase and typically there's so much else going on (local regs, mold disclosures, lead paint disclosures, etc.) that it feels weird, but this is how contract law operates.
- tempnow987 4y ago
  Many house offers have "contingencies" (financing, inspection etc etc). These are somewhat less binding on buyer. Where I am though for a while contingency free offers were being made. These are more binding. Emails however are the gotcha's. Lots of "esignature" rules mean that you don't have to actually sign an offer or acceptance anymore, but can do stuff via email. Folks DO run into trouble this way - with sometimes terrible deals agreed to via email. Kloian v. Domino’s Pizza for a funny one where they couldn't even get a formal settlement agreement, but Domino's still forced a contract.

akvadrako 4y ago

It is in writing; wtf do you mean?

car_analogy 4y ago

There's offers and then there's binding offers - I assume it must be made very clear if an offer is binding before it is legally treated as such.

tempnow987 4y ago
This is entirely false. There's been plenty of litigation in this area. If you offer $230K, the other party accepts, then you are done. You can sometimes rescind before acceptance. Email Contract Safety Tips Since the validity of email contracts is generally accepted under the law, it is important to exercise caution when doing business through email. To that end, the following tips may be helpful: A contract need not be physically signed to be agreed to. A contract may be created over a series of emails, not just one. In some instances, a preliminary email may constitute a binding contract regardless of it referencing a future formal agreement that has yet to be agreed to. Beware of creating an “implied-in-fact” contract, which may occur through industry custom and your conduct. Beware of using certain terms unless you intend their meaning. If certain conditions are desired before entering into a contract, state them clearly. Do not create the impression of a meeting of the minds if that is not the intent.
mr_toad 4y ago
It’s not wise to make assumptions about how the law works when there’s money on the table.

deleted 4y ago

[deleted]

site-packages1 4y ago

I think the difference here is between what contract law states under common law and what people imagine it to state. I agree it feels weird to say hey I offer you X for a house and you accept then we're under contract. It's such a big purchase and typically there's so much else going on (local regs, mold disclosures, lead paint disclosures, etc.) that it feels weird, but this is how contract law operates.

tempnow987 4y ago
Many house offers have "contingencies" (financing, inspection etc etc). These are somewhat less binding on buyer. Where I am though for a while contingency free offers were being made. These are more binding. Emails however are the gotcha's. Lots of "esignature" rules mean that you don't have to actually sign an offer or acceptance anymore, but can do stuff via email. Folks DO run into trouble this way - with sometimes terrible deals agreed to via email. Kloian v. Domino’s Pizza for a funny one where they couldn't even get a formal settlement agreement, but Domino's still forced a contract.