Buy with confidence, with Openn

Openn Negotiation is a unique sales process that combines the best of auction and private treaty sales methods. This sales method ensures a buyer can’t miss out because they didn’t know what to pay.

In a nutshell, a buyer must start the qualification process by searching for the property they’re interested in and entering a starting price.

They will be asked to complete terms for the owner’s consideration, which can include level of deposit, settlement date, and any other terms that can be flexible. Once the vendor agrees to your terms, the pending price becomes live on the property, and the buyer is allocated a unique paddle number, making them qualified.

Once qualified, buyers can see the paddles representing other qualified buyers, the current highest bid, the final bidding stage date and a bidding timeline. They can improve their price at any time or sit tight for the final stage. Alternatively, if they are the sole qualified buyer and the price submitted is acceptable, the seller can instruct the agent to sell at any time.

An Openn Negotiation campaign is identified by the Openn Negotiation logo on the listing, and you can read more about the differences between an Openn Offer and Openn Negotiation campaign below.

Openn Offers is a private treaty/sale process. It gives agents a centralised offer management system and provides buyers with real-time information on the status of their offer and how many buyers there are. 

Buyers will submit a starting price, terms and personal details for review by the agent and vendor. The starting price is then progressed to the next stage where they can see how many other buyers are involved.

While the platform will display a date and time indicating when the final offer stage will begin, the vendor can accept any offer, at any time. The offer accepted may not be the highest offer, but it will have more favourable terms for the vendor.

An Openn Offers campaign is identified by the Openn Offers logo on the listing. You can read more about the differences between an Openn Offers and Openn Negotiation campaign below.

The final offer or bidding stage brings the Openn process to an end. The platform will display a date and time indicating when this will begin. Once this starts, new buyers cannot be accepted and qualified buyers will participate and decide if they wish to improve their bid or offer further, under a countdown timer.

Each time someone improves their bid or offer, or the increment is adjusted by the agent, the countdown timer resets. This is designed to provide plenty of time for each buyer to determine their next improvement on price. The agent can pause the timer and speak to the owner to set new increments, determine when the home meets the reserve or call buyers direct to encourage an additional bid.  The agent is also able to adjust the final bidding stage date, if needed. 

In an Openn Negotiation, after the clock runs out, if the property has met reserve then it is sold to the highest bidder. If it has not met reserve, it is passed in and the agent will continue negotiations. In Openn Offers, while there may be a final offer stage date set, the property can still sell at any time. 

Yes, in an Openn Negotiation, if a sole bidder enters a price that is acceptable to the seller, the property can be sold to them immediately.  

If there are other qualified bidders on the property, the final bidding stage must be conducted to give other bidders a fair chance to purchase the property; although, this final stage can be brought forward.

In an Openn Offers campaign, the property can be sold at anytime to anyone, on the vendor's instructions.

In an Openn Negotiation, all buyers are required to complete and sign a fully binding contract as part of the qualification process, which is then signed by the seller. As a result of this process, buyers will have confidence that each paddle on the bidding timetable is linked to a legally binding contract.

The contract documentation and verification process all bidders and sellers sign before being allowed to bid is more rigorous than traditional selling methods. This process has been through a thorough legal review to ensure compliance with the Auction Act. Dummy bids are impossible with an Openn Negotiation.

In an Openn Offers campaign, each buyer accepts the terms of use before their offer is placed. The real estate agent undertakes a comprehensive identity check before progressing their offer, and each buyer is represented by a unique paddle number.

Absolutely, yes. All sales methods facilitated through the Openn platform have undergone a thorough legal review to ensure compliance in all states.

Additionally, the contract documentation and verification process all bidders and sellers sign before being allowed to participate in an Openn Negotiation is more rigorous than traditional selling methods.

If you like the property, it is best to get qualified straight away because it could sell at any time. The qualification process can take up to 24 hours.

This feature is made available by the agent. If you are unable to observe via the app, please contact the agent who will be able to assist.

It’s important to remember that being an observer does not mean you are qualified to participate in the negotiations, but it will allow you to observe the process.

If you decide you do not wish to participate anymore, you can withdraw during the campaign stage or before the property has met reserve.