REAL ESTATE LAW

Real Estate Law

Real Estate Law

Introduction

Reference to the scenario Laura has informed Percy about her plans of withdrawing from the contract within the right time frame and is not liable for surveying the pub in South Africa.

The offeror may waive the need to inform him or her of acceptance. The most common examples are unilateral contracts.

Where the offeror Stipulates the Method of Acceptance

The offeror may, when it is made, state that a particular method of communication must be used to accept the offer, in which case that method must be used. The general rule is that acceptance is not complete until it is received by the offeror. The exception to this is waiver and acceptance by post. Note that where acceptance in writing is specified this does not necessarily mean acceptance by post. The courts will look at the intentions of the parties in the event of a dispute.

Where no method of Acceptance is Stipulated

If no method of communication of acceptance is mentioned then any reasonable method may be used. This will usually depend on the method of communication the offer e.g. oral offers will be accepted orally. If the offer indicates some urgency it may be that telephone acceptance may e considered the most reasonable and letter unreasonable. (Bradley A., 2003. Pp. 16-22)

Acceptance by Post

The general rule that acceptance is not effective until it is communicated to the offeror does not apply to acceptance by post. When acceptance by post is stipulated or reasonable it is effectively communicated when a correctly addressed letter is put into the post box or handed to a person who is authorised to collect mail, even if the letter is never received by the offeror.

Acceptance by post must be stipulated or reasonable, acceptance in writing does not necessarily mean by post - Henthorn v Fraser (1892); Holwell Securities v Hughes (1974). The test for deciding whether the parties intended a term to be implied was expressed by Mackinnon LJ in Shirlaw v Southern Foundaries (1926) Ltd (1939) as "...that which in any contract is left to be implied and need not be expressed is something that is so obvious that it goes without saying; so that if, while the parties were making their bargain, an officious by stander were to suggest some express provision for it in their agreement, they would testily suppress him with a common "Oh, of course”. This is the option included within the real estate contract that works as an escape hatch especially to the buyers. Contingency allows the offeree of the contract to walk away from it without any penalty on the condition that some of terms have not been met that was included within the contract.

Contingencies are obligatory to abide for a number of conditions such as when the buyer has not been granted with a mortgage loan of at least 75% during the time period of purchase, if the buyer is not satisfied with the condition of the property but has already purchased it relying ...