If a buyer wishes to cancel an offer on a house, what must they do?

A buyer who wishes to cancel an offer on a house must revoke the offer before it is accepted by the seller. Once an offer is made, it remains valid until the seller accepts it, rejects it, or the offer expires according to the terms stated by the buyer. Therefore, if the buyer changes their mind about the offer, they must communicate their intention to withdraw it before the seller has indicated acceptance. This revocation must be communicated clearly and directly to ensure that the seller is aware of the buyer's change in intention.

If the buyer were to wait for the seller to respond, there is a risk that the offer might be accepted, thereby creating a binding contract that the buyer did not intend to enter. Submitting a new offer on another property does not cancel the initial offer and does not follow proper protocol for revocation. Likewise, notifying the seller in writing after acceptance would be ineffective, as the acceptance transforms the offer into a legally binding agreement, making revocation after this point much more complicated and potentially involving the buyer in the terms of the contract. Therefore, to effectively cancel the offer, the buyer must ensure they revoke it before the seller's acceptance.