Making An Offer

The beginning of negotiations is usually the end of many months of hard work for the buyer or seller. The work ahead requires skill in order to maintain a strong position.

Sellers can lose their advantage if they do not counter an offer that a buyer has made. Even if the opening offer is beneath what the seller feels is reasonable, it is advisable for the seller to respond with a slight reduction from the asking price. The most important component in negotiating is good communication.

The best way to handle a low offer is to counter it with definite terms that are favorable to the seller. A counter offer has two advantages: 1) it keeps the buyer interested, and 2) it moves the negotiation forward and gives the buyer the opportunity to submit another offer that the seller is more likely to prefer.

If you are selling your home, you should be prepared for the day your first offer comes in. When your real estate agent calls to say there is an offer on your home, you will naturally get excited. When your agent describes the offer, you will probably experience an adrenaline rush. Whether the offer is good or bad, you should just remain calm–and discuss a counter-offer with your agent. The negotiations of a purchase begin with the buyer’s ideal terms and a counter offer that communicates the seller’s ideal terms.

A good agent will look beyond the price when evaluating an offer. If the buyers’ financial qualifications are shaky or the offer includes potentially problematic terms or conditions, your real estate agent should be there to minimize any risk to you and to address these items in your counter-offer. Your agent’s job is not to make a decision for you, but to be sure that you understand fully what the offer includes and what is expected.

Many of the offers we submit for prospective buyers aren’t exactly what the sellers want. The price may be lower than they are asking or there might be terms included in the offer that will require negotiation. What happens after the offer is submitted?

The seller’s real estate agent will present the offer to the sellers, along with the buyer’s qualifications. If the sellers accept the offer, then a purchase agreement is written and signed by both parties. If the sellers counter the offer, the next action is initiated by the buyers when they make a response, either accepting the counter offer or countering it with yet another figure. If you want to buy a particular house, your chances of succeeding are greater if your initial offer is as close to the asking price as possible. You could save money by engaging in lengthy negotiations, but you run the risk of losing the home if a more attractive offer comes in from another buyer.

If you are the buyer in a home sale transaction, you should be prepared to submit an offer to the seller. An offer is not simply the price — there are more components involved.

The real estate agent will act as the conveyor of information. There are a few things to look out for in such negotiations: 1) include a finance contingency, even if you have loan pre-approval, 2) insist on an engineer’s, termite and radon inspection contingencies, 3) itemize the personal property you want included, such as chandeliers or drapes, and 4) submit the closing date you prefer.

Buyers should be prepared to make their best offer first, but if that offer is not acceptable to the seller, they should expect to go through a round of counter-offers.

Negotiations for the sale of a home can be affected by emotional factors. For example, it is easy to be offended by someone who is making an offer on your property. Even if the buyers love your house, they are trying to negotiate the best possible price and terms. They probably will not let you know how much they want your home until they have negotiated a purchase agreement.

Buyers almost never write offers that please the sellers entirely. Offers and counter offers may be traded back and forth over days or weeks. Terms of the sale will be discussed and deadlines will be set. When there is finally a meeting of the minds, both sides may feel relieved but exhausted by the process. One of a real estate agent’s most important jobs is to act as the intermediary during such negotiations. With our knowledge of financing, negotiation procedures, and the tax laws affecting real estate sales, we come up with creative solutions to the challenges that may arise.

When you find the right home, what can you do to maximize your chances of actually getting it? The first step you should take is to make a prompt offer.

Whether you are in a buyers’ or sellers’ market, taking too much time to initiate an offer can cost you money, especially if you are planning to offer less than the asking price or will be asking for special terms. If your offer is the only one on the table, the sellers will consider it, and if they don’t accept it, they may make a good counter offer. While you are “sleeping on it”, however, you risk the possibility of another offer coming in. If another buyer appears on the scene, you lose an important advantage while you and the sellers are going back and forth with offers and counter offers. A buyer who really wants that special house will make the best possible offer –as quickly as possible.

You have found the perfect house with everything you wanted–and then some–but the price is more than you want to pay. You decide to go for it anyway, and ask the agent to submit what real estate agents call a “low ball” offer.

Low ball offers sometimes work. If the market is fluctuating and the sellers are anxious, they may just accept it. They may be willing to negotiate if they have listed the house at a higher price than is reasonable. Most sellers are open to offers, but they won’t give their house away, especially if the asking price is in line with recent sales of similar homes.

What do you have to lose by making a low offer? If the seller yells and screams, the agent will be the focus of his wrath — and we don’t take it personally. If you really want the house, however, a very low initial offer may irritate the seller to the point that he won’t consider a better offer, if you decide to submit one. Design your strategy on the basis of how badly you want the house.

When you make an offer on a house, it is accompanied by an earnest money check. Earnest money is intended to demonstrate that you are “in earnest” about purchasing the property. The earnest money check is made out to the listing company. What happens to this check?

The party holding the check acts as an escrow agent until you go into closing. At that time you will receive credit for the amount of your check against the down payment and closing costs. Real estate brokers are required by law to keep escrow funds in a special account. These funds cannot be used to pay any other expenses associated with the sale. If you don’t complete the transaction, the purchase contract determines the disposition of your earnest money funds. Be sure to review this part of your contract with the real estate agent.

If you are in default on your agreement, the funds may go to the sellers, so be sure that you understand the deadlines in order to avoid breach of contract and forfeiture of your deposit. If you have any questions, be sure to ask your real estate agent for advice.

When you make an offer on a house, your biggest decision is how much to offer. Although you don’t want to pay more than you have to, it is sometimes hard to predict how much is “enough” for the seller.

Some sellers price their homes at their bottom line and may be unwilling to negotiate, unless the house has been on the market for a long time. Others build in a little room for negotiation. Some sellers are more motivated than others to get their homes sold. Whatever your situation, it is hard to know what sellers will do until they are presented with an offer.

If your offer is very low, your finances might look shaky, and asking the sellers to pick up closing costs might just result in a refusal of your offer. If your original proposal is unacceptable, the seller will usually make a counter offer. While sellers like to get their asking prices, good listing agents prepare them for the possibility of receiving offers that involve some compromises.

After many months of searching, you have found your ideal house. You are a little older and a little wiser now, so you want to give the impression that you are serious without appearing to be too eager. What should you do? In the marketplace, “money talks.”

There is no absolute rule about how much “good-faith” deposit you should put down–but it is a tool to make your point with the seller. The typical $1,000 will hold many homes for you, except in larger-home markets where it may be critical for you to show that you are an especially serious and able buyer. You don’t want to make a deposit that is too large in case there is a problem getting your money back, but if your offer is substantially below the asking price, a larger deposit–$5,000 or $10,000–might influence the seller. If you make a low deposit with your offer, be sure to provide for an increased deposit when the offer is accepted or upon removal of the contingencies.