If you are looking for the top reasons to back out of an offer, you have to check your contract and read the contingencies. In fact, study the contract carefully and become intimately acquainted with everything that it contains.
Once you made the offer, the owner accepted, and the earnest money deposit was made, you became contractually and legally bound to buy the property. If you are looking to back out of the offer now, then you need to do so through legally valid reasons so that there is no breach of contract. The valid reasons will be listed as contingencies in the contract, which is why you need to know what is included in it.
A top reason that is by buyers to back out of an offer is the inability to obtain financing. If you made the offer without being pre-approved for a mortgage loan, the contract should have been made dependent upon your ability to secure financing. This will allow you to back out the offer without losing your earnest money deposit. If this is a reason that applies to you, then by all means use it to back out of your offer and get your earnest money deposit back.
The results of the home inspection are also a top reason that is used to back out of an offer. Look over your contract, and find the clause that talks about home inspection results. If the home inspection turned up major structural flaws or anything that would jeopardize your family's health and safety, then you have a very valid reason to back out of your offer, especially if the owner refuses to renegotiate or pay for the repairs.
Liens, other mortgages, tax issues and other encumbrances are also a top reason used by buyers to back out of an offer. The title company will usually turn up any of these issues that the house may have, and you would have to decide whether the financial burden would be too much for you at this time. If the homeowner is expecting you to assume these responsibilities, then you have a reason to back out of the contract.
The best thing to do, if you have not yet made an offer, is to ensure that the contract includes contingencies for any major issues that may come up. If you have an experienced real estate agent, your agent will be aware of what those issues are and include those in the contract. If there is a particular issue that is important to you, then you would have to speak to your agent about getting it included.
The idea is to protect yourself as much as possible in case the house has major issues, and they turn up during the buying/selling process. If you fail to protect yourself through contingencies, you may not only end up losing your earnest money deposit, you may end up in court, facing a lawsuit.
This means having to hire an attorney, and losing valuable time going back and forth to court. It can all be avoided through proper contingencies in the contract, but do make sure that any contingencies that you request are not unreasonable.
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