How to Negotiate the Best Offer for your House
Buying a home is an exciting and very expensive venture. It’s good to understand the mortgage process, your financial status, and what you want and needs in a home. This will help you ensure a desirable outcome when you begin your home search. When buying a home you don’t want to pay what the seller is asking you can negotiate the amount. Learn about negotiating prices below.
1. Hire a real estate agent who can help.
A home buying process is a daunting task but with a help of a real estate agent, it could be easier. A qualified real estate agent can help you to get your dream home and make offers. Here are some services a real estate agent can do for you,
- Arrange showings
- Offer a better understanding of the local real estate market
- Help you get what you really want in a home
- Show the homes that meet your criteria
- Act as your go-between and advisor during negotiations with sellers
Not all real estate agents have negotiation experience or even offer this service. As a buyer hiring an agent, make sure you look for one with experience writing real estate contracts and negotiating on behalf of clients.
2. Understand how motivated the seller is.
A good realtor will help you understand seller motivation like,
How long the house is for sale in the market. In general, if the home is longer on the market, a seller will accept a lower offer.
How many offers have been made? If the seller hasn’t had any offers for a long time, they may be more curious to accept yours. If they’ve declined many offers, it could be a sign they aren’t super motivated.
Whether the seller is on a deadline. If the seller has to move or needs to sell the home within a short time for any other reason, it may be a great time for a buyer to negotiate.
The home has been foreclosed on, which means the lender may be motivated to sell it to recoup whatever it can.
3. Be realistic with your offer.
Make sure you’re realistic when you make an offer, it’s about what you can pay every month and whether you can get approved for a mortgage. Before starting a negotiation it’s good to get pre-approved for a mortgage. This will let you know how much amount to be approved for, how much down payment you might need, and the interest.
4. Put a deadline on the offer
This will reduce the chances that other offers might come in and pushes the seller to make a decision or counteroffer, with this information you can move on with the negotiation or start looking for another home.
What Else Can You Negotiate with Home Sellers?
Ask the seller to pay closing costs
Ask the seller to leave appliances like a refrigerator, heater, etc.
Make repairs yourself but ask the seller to agree on a cash payout.
Use the home inspection and ask the sellers to repair huge damages.
