{"id":29061,"date":"2026-06-09T04:42:12","date_gmt":"2026-06-09T11:42:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.homelight.com\/blog\/?p=29061"},"modified":"2026-06-10T01:47:09","modified_gmt":"2026-06-10T08:47:09","slug":"buyer-active-contingent","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.homelight.com\/blog\/buyer-active-contingent\/","title":{"rendered":"What\u2019s an \u2018Active Contingent\u2019 Listing? Can I Still Make an Offer?"},"content":{"rendered":"

You find the perfect home while scrolling through a homebuying app<\/a> and immediately imagine your life inside it: the mornings in the kitchen, the quiet evenings in the living room, the future you could build there. You check the details, ready to schedule a showing, only to notice a small note about its status. The listing is still visible, but it has a status note showing it\u2019s under contract with conditions: \u201cactive contingent.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n

\n
\n
\n \"homelight\n <\/div>\n \n

Start Making Offers Without Waiting to Sell Your Home<\/h3>\n

Through our Buy Before You Sell program, HomeLight can help you unlock a portion of your equity upfront to put toward your next home. You can then make a strong offer on your next home with no home sale contingency.<\/p>\n \n

\n Buy Before You Sell<\/a>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

In real estate, active contingent is like a warning that the door isn\u2019t fully closed, but it\u2019s not fully open either. In this post, we\u2019ll break down what that status really means, the common contingencies<\/a> behind it, and what options buyers still have when they find a home they love at this stage.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

What does \u201cactive contingent\u201d mean in real estate, and can you still make an offe? Here\u2019s what homebuyers need to know before passing one up.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":263,"featured_media":29081,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"content-type":"","cybocfi_hide_featured_image":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[192,700,646],"tags":[766],"class_list":["post-29061","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-for-buyers","category-buyer-contracts","category-making-offers","tag-what-does-contingent-mean-in-real-estate"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nWhat\u2019s an \u2018Active Contingent\u2019 Listing? Can I Still Make an Offer?<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"What does \u201cactive contingent\u201d mean in real estate, and can you still make an offe? Here\u2019s what homebuyers need to know before passing one up.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.homelight.com\/blog\/buyer-active-contingent\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"What\u2019s an \u2018Active Contingent\u2019 Listing? Can I Still Make an Offer?\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"What does \u201cactive contingent\u201d mean in real estate, and can you still make an offe? Here\u2019s what homebuyers need to know before passing one up.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.homelight.com\/blog\/buyer-active-contingent\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"HomeLight Blog\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/gohomelight\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-06-09T11:42:12+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-06-10T08:47:09+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.homelight.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/active-contingent-6.png\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1500\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"800\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/png\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Courtney DuChene\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@CourtneyDuChen2\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@gohomelight\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Courtney DuChene\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"15 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":[\"Article\",\"BlogPosting\"],\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.homelight.com\\\/blog\\\/buyer-active-contingent\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.homelight.com\\\/blog\\\/buyer-active-contingent\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Courtney DuChene\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.homelight.com\\\/blog\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/97bf9672f0d5084ed09435d66ad3eb40\"},\"headline\":\"What\u2019s an \u2018Active Contingent\u2019 Listing? Can I Still Make an Offer?\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-06-09T11:42:12+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-06-10T08:47:09+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.homelight.com\\\/blog\\\/buyer-active-contingent\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":144,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.homelight.com\\\/blog\\\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.homelight.com\\\/blog\\\/buyer-active-contingent\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.homelight.com\\\/blog\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2022\\\/01\\\/active-contingent-6.png\",\"keywords\":[\"What does contingent mean in real estate?\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Buyers\",\"Contracts\",\"Making the Offer\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.homelight.com\\\/blog\\\/buyer-active-contingent\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.homelight.com\\\/blog\\\/buyer-active-contingent\\\/\",\"name\":\"What\u2019s an \u2018Active Contingent\u2019 Listing? Can I Still Make an Offer?\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.homelight.com\\\/blog\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.homelight.com\\\/blog\\\/buyer-active-contingent\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.homelight.com\\\/blog\\\/buyer-active-contingent\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.homelight.com\\\/blog\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2022\\\/01\\\/active-contingent-6.png\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-06-09T11:42:12+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-06-10T08:47:09+00:00\",\"description\":\"What does \u201cactive contingent\u201d mean in real estate, and can you still make an offe? Here\u2019s what homebuyers need to know before passing one up.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.homelight.com\\\/blog\\\/buyer-active-contingent\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.homelight.com\\\/blog\\\/buyer-active-contingent\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.homelight.com\\\/blog\\\/buyer-active-contingent\\\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.homelight.com\\\/blog\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2022\\\/01\\\/active-contingent-6.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.homelight.com\\\/blog\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2022\\\/01\\\/active-contingent-6.png\",\"width\":1500,\"height\":800,\"caption\":\"Source: ( Alexander Kaufmann \\\/ Unsplash)\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.homelight.com\\\/blog\\\/buyer-active-contingent\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.homelight.com\\\/blog\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"What\u2019s an \u2018Active Contingent\u2019 Listing? Can I Still Make an Offer?\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.homelight.com\\\/blog\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.homelight.com\\\/blog\\\/\",\"name\":\"HomeLight Blog\",\"description\":\"Real Estate Advice from America's Top Agents\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.homelight.com\\\/blog\\\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.homelight.com\\\/blog\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.homelight.com\\\/blog\\\/#organization\",\"name\":\"HomeLight\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.homelight.com\\\/blog\\\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.homelight.com\\\/blog\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.homelight.com\\\/blog\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2017\\\/11\\\/logo-hr-color.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.homelight.com\\\/blog\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2017\\\/11\\\/logo-hr-color.png\",\"width\":1348,\"height\":262,\"caption\":\"HomeLight\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.homelight.com\\\/blog\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.facebook.com\\\/gohomelight\\\/\",\"https:\\\/\\\/x.com\\\/gohomelight\",\"https:\\\/\\\/www.linkedin.com\\\/company\\\/homelight\\\/\",\"https:\\\/\\\/www.youtube.com\\\/channel\\\/UCimugR9XF17-OZ7B9fNnxWw\",\"https:\\\/\\\/en.wikipedia.org\\\/wiki\\\/HomeLight\"],\"description\":\"Everything you need to know to sell your house faster and for more money. Articles, guides, and advice from top agents all over the U.S.\",\"email\":\"support@homelight.com\",\"telephone\":\"(888) 688-0350\",\"legalName\":\"HomeLight\",\"foundingDate\":\"2012-01-01\",\"numberOfEmployees\":{\"@type\":\"QuantitativeValue\",\"minValue\":\"201\",\"maxValue\":\"500\"}},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.homelight.com\\\/blog\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/97bf9672f0d5084ed09435d66ad3eb40\",\"name\":\"Courtney DuChene\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/9834ce994b85698be915c0f8842fe8bb4171aabce9c0cebd9198b48d63bcab3e?s=96&d=blank&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/9834ce994b85698be915c0f8842fe8bb4171aabce9c0cebd9198b48d63bcab3e?s=96&d=blank&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/9834ce994b85698be915c0f8842fe8bb4171aabce9c0cebd9198b48d63bcab3e?s=96&d=blank&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Courtney DuChene\"},\"description\":\"Courtney DuChene is a freelance writer covering business, personal finance and real estate, based out of Philadelphia.\",\"sameAs\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.linkedin.com\\\/in\\\/courtney-d-b7517596\\\/\",\"https:\\\/\\\/x.com\\\/CourtneyDuChen2\"],\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.homelight.com\\\/blog\\\/author\\\/courtney-duchene\\\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"What\u2019s an \u2018Active Contingent\u2019 Listing? Can I Still Make an Offer?","description":"What does \u201cactive contingent\u201d mean in real estate, and can you still make an offe? Here\u2019s what homebuyers need to know before passing one up.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.homelight.com\/blog\/buyer-active-contingent\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"What\u2019s an \u2018Active Contingent\u2019 Listing? Can I Still Make an Offer?","og_description":"What does \u201cactive contingent\u201d mean in real estate, and can you still make an offe? Here\u2019s what homebuyers need to know before passing one up.","og_url":"https:\/\/www.homelight.com\/blog\/buyer-active-contingent\/","og_site_name":"HomeLight Blog","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/gohomelight\/","article_published_time":"2026-06-09T11:42:12+00:00","article_modified_time":"2026-06-10T08:47:09+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1500,"height":800,"url":"https:\/\/www.homelight.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/active-contingent-6.png","type":"image\/png"}],"author":"Courtney DuChene","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@CourtneyDuChen2","twitter_site":"@gohomelight","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Courtney DuChene","Est. reading time":"15 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":["Article","BlogPosting"],"@id":"https:\/\/www.homelight.com\/blog\/buyer-active-contingent\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.homelight.com\/blog\/buyer-active-contingent\/"},"author":{"name":"Courtney DuChene","@id":"https:\/\/www.homelight.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/97bf9672f0d5084ed09435d66ad3eb40"},"headline":"What\u2019s an \u2018Active Contingent\u2019 Listing? Can I Still Make an Offer?","datePublished":"2026-06-09T11:42:12+00:00","dateModified":"2026-06-10T08:47:09+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.homelight.com\/blog\/buyer-active-contingent\/"},"wordCount":144,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.homelight.com\/blog\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.homelight.com\/blog\/buyer-active-contingent\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.homelight.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/active-contingent-6.png","keywords":["What does contingent mean in real estate?"],"articleSection":["Buyers","Contracts","Making the Offer"],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.homelight.com\/blog\/buyer-active-contingent\/","url":"https:\/\/www.homelight.com\/blog\/buyer-active-contingent\/","name":"What\u2019s an \u2018Active Contingent\u2019 Listing? Can I Still Make an Offer?","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.homelight.com\/blog\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.homelight.com\/blog\/buyer-active-contingent\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.homelight.com\/blog\/buyer-active-contingent\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.homelight.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/active-contingent-6.png","datePublished":"2026-06-09T11:42:12+00:00","dateModified":"2026-06-10T08:47:09+00:00","description":"What does \u201cactive contingent\u201d mean in real estate, and can you still make an offe? Here\u2019s what homebuyers need to know before passing one up.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.homelight.com\/blog\/buyer-active-contingent\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.homelight.com\/blog\/buyer-active-contingent\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.homelight.com\/blog\/buyer-active-contingent\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/www.homelight.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/active-contingent-6.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.homelight.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/active-contingent-6.png","width":1500,"height":800,"caption":"Source: ( Alexander Kaufmann \/ Unsplash)"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.homelight.com\/blog\/buyer-active-contingent\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.homelight.com\/blog\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"What\u2019s an \u2018Active Contingent\u2019 Listing? Can I Still Make an Offer?"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.homelight.com\/blog\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.homelight.com\/blog\/","name":"HomeLight Blog","description":"Real Estate Advice from America's Top Agents","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.homelight.com\/blog\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.homelight.com\/blog\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/www.homelight.com\/blog\/#organization","name":"HomeLight","url":"https:\/\/www.homelight.com\/blog\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.homelight.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/www.homelight.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/logo-hr-color.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.homelight.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/logo-hr-color.png","width":1348,"height":262,"caption":"HomeLight"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.homelight.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/gohomelight\/","https:\/\/x.com\/gohomelight","https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/company\/homelight\/","https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/channel\/UCimugR9XF17-OZ7B9fNnxWw","https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/HomeLight"],"description":"Everything you need to know to sell your house faster and for more money. Articles, guides, and advice from top agents all over the U.S.","email":"support@homelight.com","telephone":"(888) 688-0350","legalName":"HomeLight","foundingDate":"2012-01-01","numberOfEmployees":{"@type":"QuantitativeValue","minValue":"201","maxValue":"500"}},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.homelight.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/97bf9672f0d5084ed09435d66ad3eb40","name":"Courtney DuChene","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/9834ce994b85698be915c0f8842fe8bb4171aabce9c0cebd9198b48d63bcab3e?s=96&d=blank&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/9834ce994b85698be915c0f8842fe8bb4171aabce9c0cebd9198b48d63bcab3e?s=96&d=blank&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/9834ce994b85698be915c0f8842fe8bb4171aabce9c0cebd9198b48d63bcab3e?s=96&d=blank&r=g","caption":"Courtney DuChene"},"description":"Courtney DuChene is a freelance writer covering business, personal finance and real estate, based out of Philadelphia.","sameAs":["https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/in\/courtney-d-b7517596\/","https:\/\/x.com\/CourtneyDuChen2"],"url":"https:\/\/www.homelight.com\/blog\/author\/courtney-duchene\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.homelight.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/29061","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.homelight.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.homelight.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.homelight.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/263"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.homelight.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=29061"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.homelight.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/29061\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.homelight.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/29081"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.homelight.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=29061"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.homelight.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=29061"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.homelight.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=29061"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}