The statute of frauds requires that all contracts for real estate must be in writing. There is nothing that prevents you from providing timely information to your seller client when a possible offer is on its way, but neither the seller nor his agent should be "negotiating" a sale based on a verbal conversation.
We actually just discussed a very similar issue the other day in a professional standards panel for our local REALTOR® association.
It seems that some listing agents are now indicating "all offers will be presented at 5pm on Tuesday" in an attempt to get multiple offers. Massachusetts law requires that the listing agent actually present ALL offers "forthwith". This means that if a (written) offer comes in after the open house on Sunday, the listing agent MUST call the seller "forthwith" (interpreted to be "immediately, without delay") to notifiy them of the offer and must ask if they would like to address the offer.
In these circumstances, the seller can tell the agent to wait until Tuesday, but if the offer is only valid until Sunday at 5pm, the offer may or may not be re-written for Tuesday. If that was the only offer received and the agent didn't tell his/her client about the offer before Tuesday, the listing agent could be in violation of professional standards and the Code of Ethics.
Moral of the story - the listing agent must present all written offers to purchase "forthwith". No exceptions. You should check what your state law is to avoid potential disputes. If your seller client thinks its a good idea to hold back on offers and not to review them as they come in, be sure to get this in writing to protect yourself in the event of a dispute. Remember - these "bright ideas" need to come from the seller, not the listing agent!
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