Two buyers, one painting

March 24, 2008 11:31 AM

I gave a collector Right of First Refusal on a painting. How long should I give him to decide?

This was not a contract. I gave a good patron (let's call him Norton) the option to buy if someone else expressed interest in purchasing the painting.

'Peggy' wants the painting immediately.

How long should I give Norton to decide, it's been several days already, particularly when Peggy is waiting for an answer?
As I implied, Norton's been a generous collector, and I don't want to make things awkward for him.

posted by artdrectr to media & arts (7 comments total)

A right of first refusal, especially if informal like this one, should be very short duration. Just call Norton and ask him he has decided. If he says yes, or no, you're all set. If he says he needs more time, explain that you appreciate his business, but you have a very ready buyer, and don't want to lose that sale in the event he ultimately declines. Then ask him if you could possibly have an answer in three hours. Stop talking (important!) and await response. If he says, I really need three days, or 24 hours, you need to respond firmly with whatever is acceptable to you, knowing how long you can string Peggy along. In other words, negotiate a definitive time frame, like 9 p.m. tonight, and leave the conversation with, "if I don't hear from you by that time, may I assume that it's OK to proceed with my other buyer?" All in all, that's not going to be awkward for Norton.
posted by beagle at 12:05 PM on March 24, 2008 [1 favorite]

IANLAAD (I am no longer an art dealer) ... I think 'several days' is long enough, provided you tell Norton that his decision-making window is closing in say 24 hours. You should tell Norton you have a keen buyer and ask him to make a decision by the next day.

Just my 2 cents, and depends really entirely on your relationship with Norton, and also on how likely Peggy is to cool off and drop out.
posted by anadem at 12:06 PM on March 24, 2008

Why not call up Norton, nicely explain that you have another buyer waiting and that while you deeply appreciate his patronage, you need to get an answer back to the other buyer. Tell him that you need to get back to your other buyer by, say, the end of the day on Wednesday (depending on how long you think Peggy will wait before she walks away), so if he wants to buy the painting, he should let you know before then. Otherwise, you look forward to showing him some great new works another time. If you don't hear from Norton by Wednesday, sell to Peggy. That way, you seem reasonable and cast your other buyer as the source of the urgency, rather than you.

If Norton is out of town/otherwise engaged this week, you could adjust the time table to be more accommodating if you think Peggy will wait it out.

(yeah, what beagle and anadem said)
posted by zachlipton at 12:08 PM on March 24, 2008

I man the web site of a local abstract painter and she tells me that in the past she usually just gives a few days but notes that time (with a specific end-date) to the client. So, if it were today that the person were being given first right of refusal, she'd say that it expires at midnight on Thursday, March 27th.
posted by dobbs at 1:49 PM on March 24, 2008

By the way, judging by your site, cool paintings.
posted by beagle at 2:07 PM on March 24, 2008

When I was working at a gallery (lo these many years ago) the grace period on first refusal ended when the ready buyer showed up. You call the first refusal, tell him you have a buyer and need a decision by the end of the business day. (Putting it more diplomatically of course.)
posted by nax at 2:43 PM on March 24, 2008

Thanks everyone for ideas.
beagle: Wish I could give BOTH your replies best answer! (kidding)

bottomline
After a prompt this evening, Norton is purchasing the painting.
posted by artdrectr at 7:37 PM on March 24, 2008