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Subject to Sale of Buyer's Property

Also known as: Subject to sale · STS clause · Buyer-sale subject · Time clause subject

A condition in a BC offer that makes the purchase depend on the buyer selling their existing home first. It is usually paired with a time clause, which lets the seller keep marketing and then serve 48 or 72 hours notice to remove the condition or let the deal go.

A "subject to sale" (STS) condition makes the buyer's offer conditional on the firm sale of their existing home, usually by a stated date. STS subjects are commonly paired with a "time clause" giving the seller the right, on receiving a competing offer, to serve the STS buyer with a notice (typically 48 or 72 hours) to remove the STS subject or collapse the contract.

STS is a buyer-protection mechanism for buyers who can't carry two mortgages but a seller-friction mechanism that depresses offer competitiveness: most multi-offer scenarios reject STS offers entirely.

Negotiate the time-clause window before writing a subject-to-sale, and get firm pre-approval on the new mortgage at the bridge or contingent-purchase level. If the seller serves a 48-hour time clause and you can't produce a firm offer on your existing home in 48 hours, you must either remove STS (committing to closing whether your house sells or not) or walk away, and you've burned the deposit if you can't close.

Always have your existing home actively listed (priced sharply) BEFORE writing STS, and negotiate at minimum a 72-hour clause. The Home Buyer Rescission Period (HBRP, 3 business days) operates separately from STS: HBRP gives a buyer 3 business days post-acceptance to walk for any reason (with 0.25% fee), but does NOT extend STS.

Home Buyer Rescission Period — A BC home buyer has three business days after an offer is accepted to back out for any reason, for a fee of 0.
Bridge Financing — A short-term loan covering the gap between the day your down payment is due and the day the money from your old home actually arrives.
Closing Day (Completion) — Closing day, or completion, is when the buyer's lawyer registers the title transfer at the BC Land Title Office and the money reaches the seller.
Designated Agency — BC's real estate agency model since June 15, 2018: the agency relationship is between the client and the individual licensee, not the brokerage; dual agency is prohibited except in narrow remote-market exceptions.

Related terms

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