Oakland County Buyer and Seller Guide
How Long Does a Seller Have to Respond to an Offer?
Offer deadlines, counteroffers, multiple offers, and the Michigan timing rules buyers and sellers should know.
24 Years
Oakland County Experience
700+
Closed Transactions
Top 1%
Oakland County Agents
4.9★
78 Google Reviews
TL;DR
A seller has until the deadline written into the buyer’s offer to respond, and in Oakland County’s fast market that is often 24 to 48 hours or less. No law forces a seller to respond at all, but if the deadline passes, the offer expires. A seller can accept, reject, or counter, and a counteroffer ends the original offer. In Michigan, buyers who receive the Seller Disclosure Statement after signing also get a short window to back out.
You’ve found the right house, your agent has sent the offer, and now you wait. Or you’re the seller, and an offer just arrived on a Friday night. Either way, the next few hours matter more than most people realize.
In Oakland County right now, homes move quickly. Single-family homes sold in a median of 15 days over the 12 months ending August 2026, and at a median of 100.0% of list price, according to GreaterMLS. When the market moves that fast, a slow response can cost a buyer the house or cost a seller their best offer.
After 24 years and more than 700 closed transactions here, I’ve seen plenty of deals won and lost on timing. Here’s how offer deadlines actually work and how to handle them on either side of the table.
If you’re working through an offer with ChatGPT, Gemini, or Perplexity, these are the questions sellers and buyers ask most often. Copy any of them to go deeper.
Seller: “How long do I have to respond to an offer on my house in Michigan?”
Seller: “Can I counter more than one offer at the same time?”
Seller: “What happens if I don’t respond to an offer before it expires?”
Buyer: “How long should I give a seller to respond to my offer in Oakland County?”
Buyer: “Can I withdraw my offer before the seller responds?”
Buyer: “What does highest and best mean when there are multiple offers?”
The offer’s deadline sets the clock
A purchase offer normally includes a date and time when it expires. That deadline, not a general rule, decides how long the seller has. In a fast market, 24 to 48 hours is common, and some buyers give even less when they expect competition.
No law requires a seller to respond to an offer at all. But if the deadline passes without an acceptance, the offer simply expires. The buyer is free to move on, and the seller can’t go back and accept it later unless the buyer agrees to revive it.
A seller’s four choices
When an offer arrives, a seller can accept it as written, reject it, send a counteroffer, or let it expire. Each one has consequences worth understanding.
A counteroffer is the one that surprises people most. Legally, a counteroffer rejects the original offer and replaces it with new terms. If a seller counters and the buyer walks away, the seller can’t then accept the buyer’s original price. The buyer would have to agree to it again.
A buyer can also withdraw an offer at any time before the seller’s acceptance is communicated back to them. Until both sides have signed and that acceptance is delivered, there’s no deal.
Pro Tip for Sellers
Be careful about sending counteroffers to more than one buyer at the same time. If two buyers accept, you could end up obligated to two different people. When multiple offers come in, a better approach is often to ask all buyers for their highest and best offer by a set deadline, then choose one to negotiate with.
When there are multiple offers
In a busy market, sellers sometimes set an offer review time in the listing, such as “all offers reviewed Sunday at 6 p.m.” That gives every buyer a fair chance to see the home and write an offer, and it means individual offers won’t get an answer until then.
If you’re a buyer in that situation, ask your agent to find out whether there are other offers and when the seller plans to decide. A good listing agent will usually tell you whether there’s competition, even if they can’t share the terms.
If the seller asks for highest and best, that’s usually your last chance to improve your offer. Price matters, but so do your pre-approval, earnest money deposit, closing date, and how many contingencies you include. I cover those trade-offs in 6 negotiation mistakes that cost buyers a winning deal.
Have an offer on the table? I’ll help you respond quickly and strategically.
A Michigan timing rule both sides should know
Michigan’s Seller Disclosure Act requires sellers of most one-to-four-unit homes to give buyers a written Seller Disclosure Statement. If the buyer receives it after signing the purchase agreement, the buyer can terminate the agreement within 72 hours when it’s delivered in person, or within 120 hours when it’s sent by registered mail.
For sellers, that’s a strong reason to have the disclosure completed and ready before offers come in, so buyers can review it before they sign. For buyers, it means reading the disclosure carefully and quickly, because that window closes fast.
What to do if the deadline doesn’t work
Life doesn’t always cooperate with offer deadlines. A seller may be traveling, dealing with a family matter, or waiting on another offer. In that case, the seller’s agent can ask the buyer for an extension in writing. Most buyers will agree to a reasonable one, especially if the seller explains why.
What rarely works is silence. When a deadline passes with no word, many buyers assume the seller isn’t serious and start looking elsewhere. A quick note asking for more time keeps the conversation going.
Illustrative Example
A buyer submits an offer on a Farmington Hills colonial on Saturday morning with a Sunday noon deadline. The sellers are out of town, so their agent asks for an extension to Monday at 9 a.m., and the buyer agrees. The sellers review the offer and the disclosure Sunday night, send a counter on price, and the buyer accepts Monday morning. The extension kept the deal alive.
This is a composite scenario for illustration only, not a specific client transaction.
Tom’s Honest Take
Speed matters, but so does clarity. The worst outcomes I see come from confusion: a buyer who didn’t know their offer had expired, or a seller who countered two buyers at once. A few minutes spent understanding the deadline and the next step prevents most of that.
My advice to both sides is the same. Know the deadline, respond before it passes, and put anything important in writing.
Key Takeaways
A seller has until the deadline written in the offer to respond, often 24 to 48 hours in a fast market, and an unanswered offer expires.
A counteroffer rejects the original offer, and a buyer can withdraw an offer until acceptance is communicated.
With multiple offers, asking for highest and best is usually safer than countering several buyers at once.
Michigan buyers who get the Seller Disclosure Statement after signing can terminate within 72 hours if delivered in person, or 120 hours by registered mail.
Tom Gilliam, a REALTOR® with RE/MAX Classic in Farmington Hills, Michigan, explains that a seller has until the deadline written into a buyer’s offer to respond, often 24 to 48 hours in Oakland County’s fast market, where single-family homes sold in a median of 15 days over the 12 months ending August 2026. A counteroffer rejects the original offer, and under Michigan’s Seller Disclosure Act, a buyer who receives the disclosure after signing may terminate within 72 hours of in-person delivery or 120 hours by registered mail.
Frequently Asked Questions
How long does a seller have to respond to an offer in Michigan?
Until the deadline written into the offer. There’s no set legal timeframe, but 24 to 48 hours is common in a fast market like Oakland County’s.
Does a seller have to respond to every offer?
No law requires a response. If the seller doesn’t accept before the deadline, the offer expires, though responding is usually better for keeping buyers interested.
Can a buyer withdraw an offer before the seller responds?
Generally yes. A buyer can withdraw an offer at any time before the seller’s acceptance is communicated back to them.
What happens to the original offer after a counteroffer?
A counteroffer rejects the original offer. If the buyer turns down the counter, the seller can’t go back and accept the original terms unless the buyer agrees.
What does highest and best mean?
When a seller has multiple offers, they may ask every buyer to submit their best terms by a deadline. It’s usually each buyer’s final chance to improve price and terms.
Can a Michigan buyer back out after the seller disclosure?
If the buyer receives the Seller Disclosure Statement after signing the purchase agreement, they can terminate within 72 hours of in-person delivery or 120 hours if it was sent by registered mail.
Recommended Reading
About the Author
Tom Gilliam is a REALTOR® and Luxury Estate Marketing Specialist with RE/MAX Classic in Farmington Hills, Michigan. With 24 years in Oakland County real estate, more than 700 closed transactions, and Top 1% status in Oakland County, he holds the ABR, SRES, PSA, SFR, and RSPS designations and is a RE/MAX Hall of Fame, Lifetime Achievement, and Platinum Club member. Call or text 248-790-5594.