Research the market, know your budget, and make sure you have all the information you need to make a winning offer. Most importantly, get pre-approved for financing. Your offer will look a lot better to the seller with proof in-hand that you can afford the home.
January 20, 2020 By Joseph Maggiore. If you're ready to buy a home, you're probably wondering about how to write “a strong offer.” When we say “strong offer,” we're talking about writing the best offer – an offer that's going to have the best chance of getting chosen by the seller.
Offer Price
This is the one component of an offer that everyone knows about, even if they've never been through the pr0cess before. However, as the buyer, it might be less of a big deal than many people make it out to be. From the sellers' perspective, the offer price makes a huge difference.
But what does a compelling offer mean exactly? To paraphrase Marlon Brando in The Godfather, a compelling offer is that irresistible offer your target customer simply cannot refuse. Usually, it comes immediately after the lead magnet.
Surprise! The answer is often “no.” Conventional wisdom might suggest that during negotiations, especially in a multiple-offer situation, the buyer who throws the most money at the seller will snag the house. In reality, however, it doesn't always end up that way.
Real estate agents often suggest that sellers either accept the first offer or at least give it serious consideration. Real estate agents around the world generally go by the same mantra when discussing the first offer that a seller receives on their home: “The first offer is always your best offer.”
An offer with a higher down payment will be more attractive to the seller and may help you outbid your competition. Price matters, of course, but it's not everything. Sellers also have to take into consideration the likelihood of the deal closing.
If your home purchase offer was rejected, it was likely for a reason involving money. Your offer price may have been too low or too high, or they may have simply received a better offer. Other reasons could include the listing agreement commission structure, specific contract requirements, or personal reasons.
The seller may think any price below the asking price a lowball offer if the listed price is already at the bottom of what they want. It's generally accepted that asking over 15% off the sale price is lowballing.
In many cases, accepting the first offer speeds up the whole process of selling a house online and brings you peace of mind. When looking at first offers, look beyond the price. Consider the buyer, the timing, and the state of the local real estate market. All of these should inform your decision.
However, there are exceptions, so as long as you are not absolutely in love with the property and can afford to let it go, it's usually worth it to try for the lowest justifiable offer you can make, even 10 or 20% under asking. The worst thing that can happen is the seller will say no.
Many times traditional sellers will receive multiple offers, but not ask for highest and best. In many states, the listing agent is required to tell all buyers when the seller receives other offers. When you are informed that there are multiple offers, don't wait around to see if they will ask for highest and best.
Be considerate of sellers: If you make several offers and one is accepted, you should immediately notify each of the other sellers and revoke your offer so they don't consider it valid. Timing is crucial in this type of situation because once a seller has signed off on your offer it's considered a ratified agreement.
A buyer can also counter a seller's counter offer, as we've mentioned in the previous example. There are no limits to the number of counters you can submit as a buyer. Home buyers first create an offer that may be below the asking price when they want to negotiate the house price presented by the home seller.
It probably depends. I guess if someone knows they want it, they make an offer quickly. We had an offer on our old house within an hour of him viewing and I offered on this one about an hour after viewing, and the one we viewed before but didn't end up getting as ours hadn't sold.
A right of first offer gives the holder the right to submit the first bid on the potential sale of a property. A right of first refusal gives the holder the right to match or refuse to match an offer that has been made to a seller.
First time buyers, whether renting or living with their parents, are often an attractive type of home buyer for sellers as they are chain-free. The process of selling your home should therefore be quicker.
Although they shouldn't, estate agents can and do lie about offers to make it look to you as a seller that they're creating lots of interest in your property. An estate agent may also lie about offers so they can push you in the direction of a specific REAL offer, so they can get their hands on their commission ASAP.
For example, a retailer might offer a men's watch for $2,000, meaning that the retailer will sell the watch for that amount. However, a customer might come into the store and offer $1,500 for the watch, meaning that the customer is expressing an interest in buying the watch for that amount.