In Brazil, "making a proposal" is an informal gesture: you text the number and wait. In the United States the word is the same — offer — but the thing itself is different. An offer is a complete, signed purchase and sale contract. If the seller signs it, the deal is done, and a clock starts running at that very moment.

Understanding that clock is what separates the buyer who moves calmly from the one who loses money through inattention. This text walks the path: what goes with the offer, the deadlines that apply by default in California, what escrow is, when the deposit is genuinely at risk — and what happens if you make offers on two houses at once.

What makes up an offer

In California, the central document is the standard C.A.R. residential contract (Residential Purchase Agreement), which already incorporates the joint escrow instructions. It contains the price, the deposit amount, the form of payment, the inspection and loan deadlines, the closing date and who pays for what.

The document is accompanied by:

• The pre-approval letter, if there is financing.
• Proof of funds for the down payment, or for the full price if the purchase is all cash.
• Attachments and disclosures applicable to the property and the type of transaction.

One note that avoids serious trouble: the "love letter to the seller", with a family photo explaining why that house is the dream house, has become a discouraged practice. It can reveal information about national origin, religion or family composition and create a risk of violating fair housing law (fair housing). Many brokerages today simply do not pass along that kind of letter.

The deadlines that start at acceptance

Once the offer is accepted, the standard California contract calendar fires — and it is short:

• Three business days to deposit the earnest money (initial deposit or earnest money) into the escrow account. That is the deadline cited in the episode, and it is the form's default.
• Three business days to deliver the contract to escrow, unless a different period is agreed.
• Seventeen days, by default, for the buyer's main protection periods — inspection, appraisal and loan. These deadlines are negotiable and are frequently shortened to make an offer more attractive.

Missing the deposit deadline does not automatically void the contract, but it puts the buyer in default and allows the seller to issue a formal notice to perform (notice to perform) and, once the period runs out, to cancel. In practice it comes to the same thing: the house goes to the next offer in line.

What escrow is — and why it exists

The deposit does not go into the seller's hands. It goes into an account held by a neutral third party, the escrow company, which holds money and documents and only releases each one when the agreed conditions are met. It is the piece that lets two strangers transact hundreds of thousands of dollars without trusting each other.

Escrow also organizes the end of the transaction: paying off the seller's old mortgage, prorating property tax, fees, title insurance and recording the deed. In California, it is standard for the service to be provided by specialized companies.

When the deposit is actually at risk

Here is the nuance that changes the answer to the question raised in the episode. While the contingencies are active, the buyer can walk away within the situations provided for — an unsatisfactory inspection, an appraisal below price, a denied loan — and recover the deposit.

The real risk begins when the buyer removes the contingencies, in writing. From then on, walking away because of a change of mind exposes the deposit, which usually becomes the subject of negotiation or a formal dispute between the parties. California real estate contracts provide for mediation and arbitration, and money sitting in escrow is only released by joint instruction or by a decision.

Two offers at the same time: is it allowed?

Legally, nothing prevents you from signing offers on different properties. The problem is what happens if both are accepted: you now hold two valid contracts, two deposits due within three business days and the obligation to cancel one of them within the rules — which, depending on the moment, means negotiating the return of the deposit.

Add to that the reputational cost. The local market is smaller than it looks; agents talk. Earning a reputation as someone who offers and backs out hurts you in the next competition, and competition is what Orange County has plenty of.

The normal path is a different one: since the seller's answer usually comes in about three days — the form provides, by default, that the offer expires if it is not accepted by the end of the third day — you make offers on one house at a time, with a short validity period. Lost it? Move on to the next one that same week.

The practical summary

Before signing any offer, have these answered: is the deposit available to leave your account within three business days? Do the inspection and loan deadlines fit what your lender can actually deliver? Do you understand which contingencies you are keeping and which you are waiving? If all three answers are yes, signing is safe. If any is no, you are buying risk along with the house.

This text is informational and does not replace legal advice. The deadlines cited are the form's defaults and may be changed by negotiation; confirm the current version of the contract with your agent.

Sources and verification

• California Association of REALTORS® — Residential Purchase Agreement and Joint Escrow Instructions (RPA): initial deposit within 3 business days after acceptance and delivery of the contract to escrow within the same period.
• C.A.R. RPA — default period of 17 days for the inspection, appraisal and loan contingencies, and the mechanism of notice to perform.
• C.A.R. RPA — expiration of the offer if it is not accepted by the end of the third day, unless a different period is stated on the form.
• Federal and state fair housing legislation (Fair Housing Act and the California Fair Employment and Housing Act) — risk associated with so-called buyer letters.
• Regulation of escrow companies in California — the role of the neutral third party in holding funds and documents until closing.

Watch this part of the episode:

The offer and contract process in the US — starting at 18:18 · CADÊ BRAZIL