Horse buying... how do you make an offer that protects the seller and the buyer?

[BunnyHugger]

Hi, All.
I haven’t bought a horse in decades - my last two were adopted from rescues.
I’m going to look at a filly tomorrow and I’m not sure how horse purchases work these days - if I like her, I have a number in mind that I plan to offer. But,… then what? Do I give them a cash deposit and trust that the horse won’t be sold out from under me? Do I give them a check deposit and they have to trust me that it will be good if I disappear and never close the deal (I wouldn’t, but my point is… how do both parties protect themselves?)

I plan to pay cash, but I’m not comfortable handing over the entire amount until I’m there ready to load the horse on the trailer. I mean, even a bill of sale from the seller doesn’t protect me if they sell the horse to someone else before I pick it up, right?
26 years ago when I last bought a horse, I gave them a check deposit to hold until the PPE then they delivered the horse and I gave them the balance. That was before Facebook and scammers under every rock. I have no reason to believe this particular seller is dishonest, I’m just… well, I’ve read a lot of horror stories. And I’m sure they’ve encountered all kinds of crazy, too. I just want this to be safe for both buyer and seller.

Thanks in advance for any advice on today’s protocols!

[Manni01]

I bought a horse ( in Europe ) 3 months ago…. For me this worked.
I trusted the seller, and he wanted no down payment. So we met at the vet and after the PPE I transferred the money to his account and showed him the screen shot. Then I took the horse with me home. He sent me the owners certificate after the money arrived on his account……

[endlessclimb]

Are you doing a ppe? If not, bring your trailer. That shows the buyer you are dead serious, and it gives a titch of leverage.

If you are doing a PPE, it’s really the sellers call. Most will hold the horse for the time it takes to do and analyze the PPE, normally a week. Others may ask for a deposit on top of that.

[Foxglove]

I bought Bob in Nov. 2023. He had been advertised on FB --sent to me by my trainer. Looking at his ad, pedigree, and pictures, he was priced low --not scary low --but enough that if he was everything he was said to be, he was going to sell fast.

But he was only 20 min from my farm. I arranged to see him the next day.

I called my lawyer kids (one is contract law) --he came up with a “contract to purchase” on the fly. Like you I was worried I’d hand over a deposit, and before the PPE, the seller would receive a higher offer and return my deposit…

I took $200 cash in hand, tried Bob, had my trainer try Bob, had my farrier look at feet and video (no way will I ever by a horse then spend the next 20 years hearing my farrier tell me if he’d seen the horse’s feet he would have told me not to buy it [eye roll]).

The seller took my deposit and signed the “intent to purchase” contract --that gave me 14 days (it was over Thanksgiving) to do a PPE, keep trying Bob in different settings on her farm and come up with the rest of the purchase price.

When pressed the seller said a “health problem and upcoming surgery” was her reason for selling Bob for less than she paid [true, I looked up his last sale ad on FB], and that he was herd aggressive [she had 4 horses on 2 acres of dry lot. Bob was constantly harassing the others].

And it all worked out. Bob passed the PPE, I paid (cashier’s check) for Bob. As it turned out, I actually knew her through 4-H --she’d been in the club with my kiddos --although 20-30 years ago. Not sure the health-surgery was 100% true because she bought another horse within a week --but since Bob was everything she said he was --I felt I had a good deal.

I think the main reason she sold him --she only had him 7 months --was he really is very herd aggressive. I have to keep him in a separate 5 acre field (shed, hay, water, horse neighbors on all sides of the fence).

So anyway —look on-line for an “Intent to Purchase” contract --make it your own --both of you sign and date it.

But be aware --if the seller defaults --you will only get your money back —probably --it is difficult to sue for “specific intent” (I think that’s the term) – can’t remember what kid said --in other words, you can relatively easily get your money back, and court costs --but you will not get the horse you wanted to buy --at best (remote) the seller who violated the contract would have to sell you another horse at the same price. Think cars --dealer takes your deposit for a car worth $10K then sells that exact car to someone else for $15K. Car dealer returns your deposit and you say, “No, I want the $10 K car.” In court, the judge would l(most likely) return your deposit and have the dealer give you a car worth the value of the $15 K car , same make, model, year etc—but in horses, that’s not the same . . .

Anyway, Bob worked out fine for me.

The seller did tell me she had a second offer from someone who was coming “on the weekend” and sight unseen had offered her more money. Probably, but you and I know that those “on the weekend” people could have been tire-kickers or never shown up.

[MissusS]

I purchased Sept 2023 and the horse was a 7-hour drive away from me, priced relatively low. After my trainer reviewed some video (she’s the one who saw the ad in the first place) and did some back-and-forth with the seller, I then asked some questions as well. This was all by FB. My trainer already had an intent-to-sell contract that I used. The seller wanted a $500 deposit which I sent via EMT once both parties signed the contract. I drove down the next day to see the horse, told the seller I was happy and wanted to proceed to PPE.
I sent the video I took to my trainer and my vet to review. Seller graciously agreed to haul horse to/from PPE and suggested two clinics to choose from. I chose the one that my vet has used for second opinions on x-rays for my previous horse, and I know as well-respected. Turns out that was the same clinic the seller used (that’s why she offered two), but they have multiple vets, so one who had never laid hands on the horse before did the PPE. There were also relatively recent xrays on file, and the seller agree to have those included for review with the PPE.
Once I was satisfied with PPE, we discussed purchase price. I offered the full asking price, but asked the seller to include her costs to haul to/from PPE vet as well as a winter blanket since I was purchasing late fall and I wanted to ensure we had something that would fit her right away (living in Canadian prairies, the temps can get cold really quickly).
Seller also offered to haul horse to me (again, about 7 hours away) and I agreed to pay for that because it was about the same as a commercial shipper, and was a familiar set-up for the horse.

In the week between agreeing to purchase and horse showing up at my boarding barn I sent the purchase price via email money transfers (I have a daily limit, so couldn’t send all at once). I left an envelope with cash in it for the price of hauling (I was away out of province day of arrival) and my BM exchanged the hauling cash for the horses papers, and also watched the horse step off the trailer/kept an eye on her for the first couple hours until I was back.

So… with my experience I would say - having a contract, being in communication with the seller, and having some trust was the key to success. I could have lost it all at any point in the transaction, but it worked out for everyone involved.

[FjordBCRF]

When I found Charlie and decided to move forward, I offered the seller a non-refundable % of his purchase price to essentially “hold” him while we arranged transportation and PPE.

He was a 6-7 hour haul from me and the seller was willing to haul him to me for the PPE with my vet. I paid him for the hauling, I also paid to put him and his wife up for the night and a per diem for food as the PPE was the following day. They were actually pretty tickled with the whole thing, they were looking forward to seeing the lake and had a really nice stay!

The other side of this is if I would have decided not to purchase him, I would have been out all that, but the stars aligned.

[exvet]

I purchased a 2 year old last July. I gave a deposit through Paypal with our agreement that I pay in full prior to the horse leaving the seller’s property in writing. I was then sent a purchase contract from the seller (a large scale breeder) as well as the brand inspection documents. I did not have a PPE done for many reasons including that I had seen the horse in person along with several others that the owner had for sale so I more or less did my own prepurchase exam on the spot. It helped that I have known this breeder for over 30 years.

I also sold a horse in September last year. I accepted a deposit which was a wire transfer from the buyer. I then took the horse to a veterinarian for the buyer to have a PPE performed. Immediately after the vet called the buyer, I had the remainder of the price in my bank account through another wire transfer (the horse passed with flying colors). The buyer had not seen the horse, nor the buyer’s agent who did all the background checking on me prior to me getting any offer. This has been the fourth sale in a row (across several years) where a veterinarian conducting a PPE commented to the potential buyer that based on disposition alone they should buy the horse. Always something that helps underscore one’s legitimacy as a seller. I did check out the potential buyer of the last horse I sold by calling and emailing trainers, veterinarians and the like before taking the horse for a PPE just to make sure the horse I was selling was going to a situation where he was likely to do well. So far all has been really good.

[dmveventer]

A lot of this will be up to the seller. If you’re buying from a breeder or someone that sells a lot of horses they likely already have a process in place and stock paperwork approved by their lawyer. Deposits are typically done to hold a horse pending PPE, and you can sign something agreeing to that to protect you both. If you aren’t doing a PPE I wouldn’t leave a deposit, I’d either make the purchase immediately and sign the BOS, or come back with your trailer and do it then but accept the horse may get sold in the meantime. A signed BOS and proof of payment would protect you from the horse being sold, but some sellers won’t keep a horse on site after it’s been officially sold for liability reasons.

Also be aware that most sellers will not accept personal checks these days even for a deposit. Cash is a little unusual but should be fine, but you may get asked for a cashier’s check or electronic transfer instead. If you do pay cash, you should both sign a receipt confirming the amount transferred so they can’t come back and claim you never paid.