Contingent simply means “depending on certain circumstances.” In real estate, when a house is listed as contingent, it means that an offer has been made and accepted; however, before the deal is complete, some additional criteria must be met.

If a property is contingent, or the contract contains a contingency, certain events must transpire or the contract can be considered null. A contingency might be that the home must past an appraisal or receive a clean inspection. The sale of a home could also be contingent on the buyer selling their home by a specified date. If either the buyer or seller fail to meet the expectations of the contingency, either party can exit the contract.