Hi Terri,

Most homes do close on time but things can always happen. If you are working with a Buyer's agent then it is the buyer's agent's responsiblity to keep tabs on the property for you. If this is the house you want and you lost out the first time, then I would go ahead and put in a back up offer. In my opinion it is not a waste of time. If this is not the house, then I would just keep an eye on it and keep looking.

But keep in mind, realtors and sellers in most cases will do what they can to notify all interested parties of when a property comes back on the market but it cannot be guarantee. Someone is always going to be upset and after 10 yr in the business it always seems to be "my realtors" fault. SO again, if this the house you want, I would go ahead and put in a back up offer. Good luck and please let me know if you do get the house. I love to hear success stories....smile.

Terri,

You can contact the listing agent and let the person know you are interested if the deal falls through. Or if you are working with a buyers agent, let your agent know and that person can stay on top of it for you. There is really no reason, in my opinion, to submit an offer when a place is under contract as it could be a waste of time. When and if the deal falls apart, the listing agent would put the property back on the MLS and let the people know that were interested in it before that it is back on the market. Hope that helps ! Good luck,

You can always put in a backup offer on a property - ask your Realtor how to do this. It might be best to place a backup offer as a first right of refusal if the exisiting contract does not go through, otherwise you could tie yourself up and would not be able to purchase a new listing that came on the market if you were locked into waiting to see if your backup offer was going to happen or not.