A buyer submits a written offer to purchase a property, stating the offer expires at 5:00 PM on Friday. At 3:00 PM on Friday, the buyer's agent communicates to the seller's agent that the buyer is revoking the offer. At 4:30 PM, the seller signs the acceptance and the seller's agent delivers it to the buyer's agent. Under California law, is there a valid contract?
Correct Answer
C) No, because the offer had already been revoked and communicated to the seller's agent before the seller accepted
Under California Civil Code §1586, an offeror may revoke an offer at any time before acceptance, provided the revocation is communicated to the offeree before acceptance occurs. Here, the buyer's agent communicated the revocation to the seller's agent at 3:00 PM — reaching the seller's authorized representative before the seller's acceptance at 4:30 PM. Because revocation was effectively communicated to the offeree's agent first, no valid contract was formed.
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Related Topics & Key Terms
Key Terms:
Related Concepts
A breach of contract occurs when one party fails to perform their obligations under the contract without a legal excuse. The non-breaching party is entitled to legal remedies including damages, specific performance, or contract rescission.
Consideration is something of value exchanged between parties to a contract, making the agreement legally binding. It can be money, a promise to act, a promise to refrain from acting, or anything else of value.
Contingencies are conditions written into a real estate contract that must be met before the transaction can close. If a contingency is not satisfied, the buyer can typically cancel the contract without penalty.
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