Ready, willing, and able buyer

Key Takeaways

• A ready, willing, and able buyer is prepared to act now, accepts the seller's stated terms, and has the money or approved financing to close.
• All three elements have to be present at the same time, so a motivated buyer without financing does not qualify.
• Commission entitlement for producing such a buyer comes from the listing agreement and contract law rather than from a state statute.
• In Washington, RCW 18.86.080(7) lets a firm collect compensation only under a services agreement that states the compensation terms.

What It Means

A ready, willing, and able buyer is the standard a listing broker has to meet to have done the job the seller hired them to do. Each word carries weight. Ready means the buyer is prepared to move forward now rather than sometime next spring. Willing means the buyer accepts the seller's terms as offered, including price, closing date, and any other condition the seller set. Able means the buyer can pay, through cash on hand or financing a lender has already approved, not through a hope of qualifying later.

All three have to be true at the same moment. A buyer who loves the house and has the cash but refuses the seller's timeline is not willing. A buyer who agrees to every term but cannot get a loan is not able.

The phrase matters because it marks the line where a broker's effort turns into a right to be paid. Under most Listing Agreement language, producing such a buyer is the performance the seller promised to compensate, which is why the seller changing their mind afterward usually does not erase the fee.

How It Works in Washington

Handle this term carefully on a license exam. The ready, willing, and able rule is contract doctrine drawn from the listing agreement and the general common law of contracts. No Washington statute says a broker earns a commission by producing such a buyer, so the wording of the Exclusive Right To Sell Listing or other services agreement decides when the fee is earned.

In Washington, what the statutes govern is the right to collect. RCW 18.86.080(7) provides that to receive compensation for rendering real estate brokerage services from any party or firm, a real estate firm must have a services agreement stating the amount the principal agrees to pay and any consent to compensation sharing between firms. RCW 18.85.331 goes further, and says no suit or action may be brought for the collection of compensation as a real estate broker, real estate firm, managing broker, or designated broker without alleging and proving that the plaintiff was duly licensed before the time of offering to perform. RCW 18.86.080(2) adds that paying compensation does not by itself establish an agency relationship.

So the doctrine tells a broker when the commission is earned, and in Washington these statutes decide whether it can be enforced. If two brokers each claim credit for the same buyer, that is a Procuring Cause question and not a ready, willing, and able question.

Example

Sylvia signs an exclusive right to sell listing with Harbor Realty for her Everett house at $565,000, on a 60 day closing, with a 5 percent commission. On April 8, broker Nate delivers an offer from the Petrov family at the full $565,000 on Sylvia's 60 day timeline, backed by an underwritten lender approval for a $520,000 loan plus $45,000 in verified cash.

The Petrovs are ready, willing, and able. Their $520,000 loan and $45,000 in cash cover the $565,000 price, and they took the seller's terms as written. Sylvia signs the acceptance on April 9, then changes her mind on April 14 and refuses to close. Under typical listing agreement language, Harbor Realty earned the $28,250 commission, which is 5 percent of $565,000, at the moment Sylvia accepted. In Washington the firm can pursue that fee because it holds a signed services agreement stating those compensation terms, as RCW 18.86.080(7) requires, and because its brokers were licensed at the relevant time under RCW 18.85.331.

Common Mistakes and Exam Traps

• Able refers to financial capacity to close, so a prequalification letter is much weaker evidence than an underwritten loan approval plus verified funds.
• An offer below the listed price or on different terms does not make a buyer willing, because willing means accepting the seller's stated terms.
• The commission is generally earned when the seller accepts in writing, not when the transaction closes, unless the listing agreement says otherwise.
• Producing a ready, willing, and able buyer is a different question from procuring cause, which decides which of several brokers gets paid.