When you receive an offer on your house, assume that the prospective buyer is well-informed of the comparable real estate prices in your area. If the offer is reasonable, you want to be sure that the buyer is financially capable of buying your home. A mortgage pre-approval is ideal in this case. Keep in mind that the buyer's offer might change and require re-negotiation, pending the results of a property inspection.

If you agree to the offer that has been presented to you, you can tentatively approve it with your signature. Remember that this is not a binding contract and is highly conditional.

An offer that you receive might contain contingencies. These are clauses that allow a buyer to back out of the deal under certain circumstances, such as is their mortgage is not approved. There might also, of course, be property inspection contingencies, as previously mentioned.
Do not be discouraged by an agreement that is full of contingencies. The buyer will have placed a significant deposit on the house when the offer was presented. They are also going to spend probably hundreds of dollars to obtain a property inspection. So even an offer with contingencies is an offer from someone who is likely a serious buyer.

If you receive several offers, the challenge is selecting the best one. Be careful not to accept an offer solely because it is the highest price--that offer might be coming from someone who is on the verge of bankruptcy. Also, refrain from playing buyers against each other; you risk scaring them of altogether.

Consider the creditworthiness of all of your prospective buyers, as well as the contingencies, terms, and conditions set for by each one's offer. If you have multiple offers and you wish to make counter-offers, only make one counter-offer at a time. Counter-offering to each buyer simultaneously could be disastrous if you end up inadvertently contracting to sell to all of them.

Counter-offers must also be made carefully or you can lose the deal. Do not worry about petty, insignificant items within your counter-offer. Do not be unreasonable in your counter-offer, either. If a buyer bids below your asking price, do not counter with your  full asking price. Analyze your house's fair market value, and you might realize that by coming down a bit in your price, you've made a sale.