Should You Accept a Home Sale Contingency in Texas?
Published by Cash Flow Deals · Last updated 2026-10-08
Accept a Texas home sale contingency only if the buyer's sale can pay them by the agreed date. If it doesn't, and they haven't waived it, the contract ends automatically under TREC form 10-6, and they get their earnest money back. Texas listings ran a median 66 days on the market in September 2026, per Realtor.com. If your timeline matters more, Cash Flow Deals offers two choices: our Cash offer, where we buy the house as-is and close, or a higher Premium offer through novation, where the home may be listed during the 15 business days of inspection and a licensed agent brings each buyer.
| Accept a home sale contingency | Cash offer | Premium offer | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Who buys | A buyer who can't buy until their own house sells and closes | Cash Flow Deals buys the house as-is | A real FHA or conventional buyer, through novation |
| What your closing waits on | The buyer getting paid from their own sale, or waiving the contingency, by the Paragraph A date in TREC form 10-6. If neither happens, the contract terminates automatically | Our written offer and 15 business days of inspection | A real buyer signing a new contract directly with you, and their lender funding it |
| Listing and showings | Form 10-6 doesn't address them; its Paragraph B covers accepting another written offer | No listing. One walk-through by our team | May be listed during the 15 business days of inspection. A licensed agent brings each buyer; showings are scheduled with you ahead of time and take 10 to 15 minutes |
| Closing date | Set in Paragraph 9 of your contract; the Paragraph A date should be no later than it | 45 days or less, on a date you help pick | 45 days or less, on a date you help pick |
| If financing falls through | Your contract's financing terms decide what happens; form 10-6 covers only the buyer's own sale | Not applicable: we're the buyer | You can still take the Cash offer |
| Fees | Set by your listing agreement and contract | No listing commission to Cash Flow Deals | Cash Flow Deals is paid as a separate line item on the closing statement |
Find Out Where the Buyer's Sale Stands Before You Say Yes
Before you accept a home sale contingency, find out how far along the buyer's own sale is. TREC form 10-6, the Texas Real Estate Commission's addendum for this, ties your contract to the buyer getting paid from that sale. A signed contract on their house isn't enough.
Texas listings spent a median of 66 days on the market in September 2026, by Realtor.com's count, published on FRED.
September 2025 ran a day longer, at 67, the most for any September since Realtor.com's Texas series began in July 2016. Back in September 2021, the median was 41. The catch: Realtor.com starts counting on the list date, and depending on its data, the count can stop at the pending date, before the sale closes.
Our view: the days that count run from their list date to their sold date, and the Texas trend belongs in your decision. Ask when their house was listed and whether it's under contract. If it's drawn no interest, we'd take that as a price set too high next to the homes buyers actually want, and your sale would sit until that price comes down.
Set the Dates and the Deposit in TREC Form 10-6
If you accept a buyer's home sale contingency, decide what goes in the blanks of TREC form 10-6, the Texas Real Estate Commission's Addendum for Sale of Other Property by Buyer. TREC's form page lists it as effective 12/05/2011, and Paragraph 22 of form 20-19, the commission's resale contract in effect since 07/01/2026, names it among the addenda.
Under Paragraph A of TREC form 10-6, if the buyer's home sale contingency isn't satisfied or waived by the date written in, the contract terminates automatically and the earnest money is refunded to the buyer.
1. The date, Paragraph A: the form's notice says it should be no later than the closing date in Paragraph 9 of your contract.
2. The waiver window, Paragraph B: if you accept a written offer to sell the house, you notify the buyer of that acceptance and that you require them to waive the contingency. They must waive it by the day you wrote in, counted from your notice, or the contract terminates automatically and their earnest money is refunded. The fewer days you write in, the sooner you know.
3. The extra deposit, Paragraph C: the buyer can waive only by notifying you and depositing the amount you wrote in with the escrow agent, as additional earnest money. Notices and waivers must be in writing.
Once a buyer waives, Paragraph D puts them in default if they fail to close and fund solely because their own sale didn't pay them, and you may use the remedies in Paragraph 15 of the contract. Paragraph E makes time of the essence and requires strict compliance with the times it sets.
Wait on the Buyer's Sale, or Help Pick Your Closing Date
Our view: when you list, you pay in time for the chance at a higher price. A home sale contingency, written on TREC form 10-6, makes your closing wait on the buyer's own sale as well. If your own timeline counts for more, Cash Flow Deals puts two offers in front of you. The choice is yours.
1. Cash offer: our team walks through the house once, then Cash Flow Deals buys it as-is and closes. Nothing gets listed.
2. Premium offer: through novation, a real FHA or conventional buyer pays more than our Cash offer. You first sign with us at a number you agree to, which gives us permission to bring that buyer in our place. Your home may be listed during the 15 business days of inspection, and a licensed agent brings each buyer; showings are set with you ahead of time and take 10 to 15 minutes. That buyer signs a new contract directly with you, and their lender funds it. Title passes once, from you to them. On the closing statement, we're paid as a separate line item.
3. Inspection period: 15 business days, the same on both offers.
4. Closing date: 45 days or less, and you help pick it.
5. If the Premium buyer's financing falls through: you can still take our Cash offer.
If you go straight to that offer, you let our team walk through once, and the house isn't listed.
Common questions
Do Texas listings sit longer in January?
Longer than in April, by Realtor.com's count. Its Texas median was 79 days in January 2026, tied with January 2017 for the highest in the series, against 53 in April 2026. A year earlier, January ran 74 and April ran 50.
Does a 66-day median mean the buyer's house will sell in 66 days?
No. It's one statewide median for September 2026, so about half the Texas listings Realtor.com measured that month ran longer. Our view: the homes buyers are choosing near theirs tell you more.
What can I do if a buyer defaults under the Texas resale contract?
Paragraph 15 of TREC form 20-19, the Texas Real Estate Commission's resale contract, says you may enforce specific performance, seek other relief the law provides, or both. Or you may terminate the contract and receive the earnest money as liquidated damages, which releases both parties.
Do I have to commit before I read your two offers?
No. Nothing binds you until you and we both sign a written contract, and you're free to have an attorney read it first. Everyone named on the title is welcome on the call.
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What this means for your options
Every path to selling a house has real tradeoffs. Cash Flow Deals is built for the middle: faster than a traditional listing, more money than a cash investor.
Wait and see
Keep the property as-is and hope conditions improve. The mortgage, insurance, and upkeep keep costing money while you wait, with no set date for things to turn around.
List with a traditional agent
Standard MLS listing, typically 5-6% in commission, and a financed buyer whose deal depends on appraisal, inspection, and lender approval — any of which can fall through after weeks on market.
Sell to Cash Flow Deals
No repairs, no showings, no financing contingency on your side — our novation structure connects you with a bank-financed buyer at a price locked at signing. Usually within one business day.
See your selling options before you decide anything.