Buyer · Offer
Every box on the form has legal consequences. Here is how the offer works in Quebec, what to write in it, and the mistakes that cost first-time buyers the most.
The offer to purchase (promesse d'achat) is the mandatory OACIQ form through which you commit to buying a property at a given price and conditions. As soon as the seller accepts it, it binds both parties: it is not a letter of intent, it is a commitment. There is no cooling-off period for a resale in Quebec; only the conditions provided allow you to withdraw. The two essential conditions of a first offer are financing and inspection, each with a fulfilment deadline, generally one to two weeks after acceptance. A deposit is not mandatory; if you pay one, it is held in a trust account, never handed to the seller, and applied to the price at the notary. In multiple offers, solidity often beats price: a firm pre-approval, short realistic deadlines, a flexible occupancy date and a credible deposit weigh heavily.
The document specifies the price offered, the desired occupancy date, inclusions and exclusions (appliances, light fixtures, curtains), the deadline given to the seller to answer, and your conditions. As soon as the seller accepts, the offer binds both parties. There is no withdrawal period for a resale in Quebec: only the conditions in the offer allow you to step back. It is exactly the moment where a broker who files offers every week changes the outcome: drafting makes the difference between a solid offer and one full of holes.
The right amount rests on comparable sales of the last months in the sector, the property's days on market and the state of the local market. In the summer of 2026, the Greater Montreal market is rebalancing: the inventory of properties for sale has risen for eleven consecutive months according to the APCIQ, which gives buyers negotiating power back, especially in condos. Well-located single-family homes remain competitive. Three signals to read before setting your number: closed comparables, not asking prices; days on market (three days and three months call for different strategies); and the segment, since a Montreal condo and a near-suburb single-family home live in two different markets in 2026. Before the number itself, your borrowing capacity and down payment set the ceiling: see our pre-approval guide and the FHSA.
The two essential conditions of a first offer are financing and inspection. The financing condition frees you if the lender refuses the loan; the inspection condition lets you withdraw or renegotiate if a building inspector finds significant problems. Each comes with a fulfilment deadline, generally one to two weeks after acceptance. A poorly drafted condition protects nothing: the inspection clause does not let you withdraw for any finding, it targets factors that significantly reduce the value or use of the property. And each condition has a strict deadline mechanism: missing a date can mean losing the protection. A condition on the sale of your current property can be added, useful but heavy in a competitive market, because the seller can often keep receiving other offers. The saving reflex: a pre-purchase inspection costs a few hundred dollars and takes a few hours. Giving it up to save money or to please is the worst calculation there is.
A deposit is not mandatory in Quebec. If you choose to pay one, it is handed to the broker and placed in a trust account, never directly in the seller's pocket, then applied to the sale price at the notary. Why pay one, then? The signal. A serious deposit tells the seller you are an organized buyer who will not vanish along the way. In multiple offers, at comparable prices, the offer backed by a deposit and a bank pre-approval regularly beats the bare offer. It costs you nothing: the amount comes back in full as a reduction of the price paid.
In multiple offers, price is not the only lever: solidity often wins. A firm mortgage pre-approval, conditions with short and realistic deadlines, a flexible occupancy date and a credible deposit weigh heavily on the seller's decision, which is above all about the certainty that the transaction will close. Overpaying on emotion, on the other hand, is paid for over twenty-five years. Our approach when a property goes into multiples: we set a ceiling price with you based on comparables before filing, not in the heat of the moment, then optimize everything else in the file. If it goes above the ceiling, we let it go: there is always another property, there is not always another budget.
The seller has three choices: accept, refuse, or make a counter-offer that changes, for example, the price or the occupancy date. Each counter-offer cancels the previous offer and restarts the exchange, with its own response deadline. As soon as one party accepts the other's offer, the agreement becomes binding: only the fulfilment of the conditions remains before the notary. Hence the importance of writing nothing in an offer you are not prepared to honour. It is a negotiation in a few quick rounds, often settled within 24 to 72 hours.
Filing without a mortgage pre-approval, giving up the inspection to seduce the seller, setting the price on emotion rather than comparables, accepting unrealistic condition deadlines, and neglecting inclusions and exclusions.
Once accepted, the offer binds both parties and there is no cooling-off period on a resale. You can only step back through the conditions written into the offer, such as financing or inspection, within their deadlines.
No. If you pay one, it goes into a trust account and is applied to the price at the notary. It strengthens your offer in multiple-offer situations.
The deadline is written into the offer itself. Negotiations by counter-offer are often settled within 24 to 72 hours.
Also available in French: version française de ce guide.
Published September 1, 2026 by the Loaa & Manseur team, the number 1 team at RE/MAX Platine in 2024 and 2025, 6th RE/MAX team in Quebec, 15th in Canada and in the global top 50 according to the official RE/MAX ranking. Tell us about your project.
Équipe no 1 de RE/MAX Platine en 2024 et en 2025, 6e au Québec, 15e au Canada et dans le top 50 mondial au classement officiel RE/MAX. Réponse en moins de 24 heures, sept jours sur sept.