Timing is everything when it comes to real estate.  For example, 2006 was not the best time to buy, and 2011 was not the best time to sell. 

But moving beyond those obvious realities, it is wild to see how the timing of offers can affect listings that have been on the market for "quite some time" -- sometimes defined as 6+ months, sometimes 12+ months, and sometimes even 18+ months.

I have had two situations thus far this year when listings had been on the market for "quite some time" with no offers at all, and all of a sudden, two offers were received within the same week.  It is quite a strange situation....

• Sellers are typically quite excited, even though a bit baffled.
• Both prospective buyers are somewhat skeptical of how such a circumstance could truly be happening.
• Negotiations return to the days of countering to one buyer, and then potentially to the other, to gauge which has the most interest in making a deal work.

Now, let's be clear here -- multiple offer situations used to involve ultimate sales prices at or above the list price -- and that is rarely happening these days in multiple offer scenarios.  However, sellers in such circumstances are certainly selling for a bit more than they would have if both offers had not happened to come in simultaneously.