Every order you place is one of two kinds. The difference is whether you care more about the price or about trading right now. You cannot have both at once, and picking the wrong one is the most common reason an order does not behave the way people expect.
Market order
A market order is executed immediately against the offers already waiting in the order book. You choose how many shares to trade; the market decides the price. A market order never rests in the book — it trades on the spot or not at all.
The form shows an estimated price, based on the last price at which the property traded. That is an estimate, not a promise. What you actually pay depends on the offers standing in the book at the moment your order arrives: if the nearest offers are small, your order reaches deeper into the book and fills at a worse price than the estimate. That gap is called slippage, and it grows with the size of your order.
If the book cannot cover your full amount, the order fills as far as it can and the remainder is cancelled. It never waits for the rest.
Use it when you want the trade done now and a small difference in price does not matter to you.
Limit order
A limit order carries your price. It is executed only at that price or better — never worse. If someone is already offering your price or better, it fills straight away. If nobody is, your order joins the order book and waits there until someone accepts it.
There is no slippage on a limit order. You know before you sign exactly what you will pay or receive per share. What you do not know is when it will fill, or whether it will fill at all.
Use it when the price matters more than the speed — for example, when you are ready to buy, but only below a certain level.
Choosing between the two
Market order — certain execution, uncertain price. You will trade, but you find out the exact price afterwards. You are always the taker, so the fee is 3%.
Limit order — certain price, uncertain execution. You know the price in advance, but it may sit in the book for a while, or never fill. If it rests and someone else fills it, you are the maker and the fee is 2%. If you set a price that fills instantly against an existing offer, you were the taker after all, and the fee is 3%.
When there is not enough liquidity
Property markets here are made entirely by other investors. There is no market maker standing by to quote both sides, so how much you can trade at any moment depends on who happens to be offering. On a quiet market a market order can come back with:
"Not enough liquidity for the requested size."
This means the order book does not hold enough offers to fill a market order that large. Nothing was traded and nothing was reserved from your balance — the order simply never happened. You have three ways forward:
Place a limit order instead. Set your own price and let the order wait for a counterparty. This is the right answer almost every time.
Reduce the size. A smaller market order may fit inside the depth that is available right now. Check the order book to see how much is actually on offer near the current price.
Wait and try again. Books refill as other investors place orders. Thin at this moment does not mean thin in an hour.
Switching to a limit order is not a consolation prize. When you place one, you become the liquidity — your order sits in the book as the offer the next person trades against. That is exactly how a young market deepens: every resting order makes the next one easier to fill. You also pay the 2% maker fee instead of 3%, because you are supplying liquidity rather than consuming it.
So the practical rule is simple: if a market order will not go through, do not keep retrying it — place a limit order at a price you are willing to accept and let it wait. Put it at or near the best offer on your side if you want it filled soon, or further away if you would rather hold out for a better price. It stays live for 90 days, and you can cancel it at any moment.
How long an order stays valid
A limit order that is waiting in the book stays valid for 90 days. During that time you can cancel it at any moment from My Orders. If nobody accepts it within 90 days, it expires on its own and the reserved funds return to you.
Partly filled orders keep waiting for the remaining amount. You always see the filled and the remaining share count in the order list.
