In real estate, right of first refusal (ROFR) is a contract clause that gives certain people the contractual right to purchase a property before the seller accepts public offers. A right of first refusal is beneficial to interested parties because it gives them the opportunity to have first dibs before any other offers can be received on the property. However, it can be a disadvantage for sellers, since it can block their access to other offers.
Right of first refusal in real estate allows interested parties the first chance to purchase a property. The right of first refusal can be used to sweeten the deal when renting out a property. Some sellers offer it as a way to attract tenants who are looking to buy but may not be ready yet.
Since the terms of the agreement are signed before the house goes on the market, it allows potential buyers plenty of time to ready themselves before committing to a mortgage. Tenants who need time to financially prepare can take this time to save for a down payment or to improve their credit score.
This contract clause is negotiated before the home reaches the market and has a few elements. Real estate lawyers help sellers and buyers determine the terms of the contract clause. The same lawyers help construct the purchase and sale agreement that transfers the home, too.
Aaliyah is a real estate agent who specializes in selling luxury homes. One of her clients is interested in purchasing a property that is only available for rent. Even though Aaliyah has showed this client several other properties in the area, the client is not interested in any other option. Right of first refusal is a great option for this client.
Right of first refusal in real estate is triggered when a homeowner decides to sell their property. If he or she has entered into a contractual agreement that requires them to give someone else the right to purchase the house first, right of first refusal is triggered immediately.
Right of first refusal can also be set into motion if a third party offers to purchase a property from a property owner. In this scenario, whoever holds the ROFR would have the opportunity to match the offer and gain ownership of the property. If this occurs, whoever has right of first refusal must also be granted the same terms as the third party.
Learn more about right of first refusal in real estate here .
Right of first refusal helps interested parties have the best chance of acquiring a property they are interested in. Since this contractual right requires sellers to accept offers from rights holders before going public, this often means that those with right of first refusal have the opportunity to get a great deal. There are a couple of different scenarios where right of first refusal would apply.
When a property owner decides to list their home on the real estate market, right of first refusal goes into effect. The seller must notify the right of first refusal holder before they can bring their listing to the public. Then, whoever has right of first refusal has a certain amount of time to put their offer in before their rights expire.
Right of first refusal protects interested parties from having to enter into a bid war for a property. This is good news for them because it means there is a much better chance of gaining a property at a bargain than otherwise. It also guarantees the property to a buyer as long as the terms are followed.
Sometimes, an interested third party will put an offer in on a property that is not for sale. If this happens and the property owner is interested in the offer, they cannot immediately accept the offer if someone else has right of first refusal. The owner must allow the owner of first refusal rights the option to buy before the third-party offer can be accepted.
Read more about right of first refusal here .
In the real estate industry, there are two contractual rights that apply to the hierarchy of home selling: right of first refusal and right of first offer. Even though they sound similar, the rights they provide are not identical. In fact, there are major differences to each one.
Find out more about the differences between right of first refusal and right of first offer here .
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Pia is returning to private practice after spending the majority of the last five years in public service as a prosecutor, handling major and violent crimes for the Office of the Commonwealth’s Attorney for Arlington County and the City of Falls Church. She is committed to serving the community through effective legal advocacy, having spent her early career doing indigent defense work and family law. Pia attended Northwestern University where she obtained a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology. After finishing college, Pia returned home to Virginia and obtained her Juris Doctorate from the Marshall-Wythe School of Law at the College of William and Mary in 2007.
Experienced in-house attorney with focus on acquisitions, divestitures, general corporate matters and litigation support.
After starting my professional career in Human Resources in the Healthcare and Non-profit fields, I decided to expand my options and attended law school, passing the North Carolina bar in 2016. Since then, I have practiced in-house for healthcare companies, in the civil rights arena, and run my own business. I am currently looking to return to my legal roots and am excited to practice business law again.
A veteran real estate attorney with experience ranging from drafting and negotiating land development agreements, to purchase and sale and lease agreements for multifamily and large commercial proects.
2008 - Present: Sole Practitioner – Dennis W. Winkler, P.C. Practice primarily in finance and business transactions, as well as commercial real estate transactions. Represent developers, investors, lenders, and businesses, in such matters as: corporate entity selection, drafting and negotiating complex asset purchase agreements, corporate mergers and sales, stock purchase agreements, and various other business contracts for closely related businesses. Involved in a variety of real estate developments, multi-family apartment buildings, construction and acquisition financing, commercial leasing, sophisticated workout transactions, joint ventures, and tax-deferred exchanges. Advise on tax and other savings incentives available to business owners and real estate owners in Illinois. Advise companies involved in related real estate activities such as sales, leasing, property management, brokerage, and construction. Tax experience that includes the representation of taxpayers in State and Federal controversies including: sales/excess tax disputes and responsible parties’ tax assessment protest. Additionally, Dennis has experience in the protest of real estate taxes of commercial and multi-family real estate. As a legal and business advisor, Dennis is committed to helping clients find, develop, and close deals that further their business objectives. Dennis regularly advises entrepreneurs and closely held businesses on matters incidental to their day-to-day business operations as well as their capital raising and start-up needs, corporate structure, private equity raises, and operating agreements. Much like general counsel, Dennis’s breadth of experience allows him to not only provide strategic planning and routine business transactional support to companies, but he also regularly advises on a number of unique issues facing companies by spotting issues and engaging specialists when needed, such as intellectual property, environmental, and bankruptcy counsel. As such, Dennis has been actively involved in sales and acquisitions of manufacturing companies, trucking companies, and logistics companies.