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In real estate, it's common for a house to be listed at one price, but the seller will turn down offers at that price because it's reasonable to expect bids 10-30% higher than the listing. There's no contract until both parties agree.

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In many/most common law jurisdictions, there is a statute of frauds or similar rule that requires that contracts that purport to transfer interest in land must be written and signed by the parties in order for a contract to be formed.

It's a bad idea to extrapolate from the special case to the general.

Honestly I've had the same thing happen with a used car on Craigslist. Guy had an emotional attachment and changed his mind when I showed up with the cash. In the absence of legislation, courts look to similar cases. Individuals selling houses & cars is more similar to this case than grocery stores advertising prices for commodities, to me.

Where I live (California), counter offer in real estate implies acceptance. Technically, the seller signs an acceptance with extra condition that the buyer accepts a higher price of $Y in X hours. The seller could do “multiple counter” offer instead, if they don’t want to imply acceptance.

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