I often talk about how to prepare yourself for the home buying process or the housing market, but how about after you find your dream home? Today I’ll be writing about how to make an offer on a home by putting yourself in the best light to end up with receiving the keys to your new home!
The right offer always starts with coming in at the right price- which means working with your Realtor in determining a fair asking price. Some factors to help you arrive at the right price are: looking at the comparables, the inventory of the market, number of days this home has been on the market, and asking your Realtor to communicate with the listing agent.
Sometimes, in an especially competitive marketplace, I will ask my buyers to write a personal letter! Of course, a top dollar offer will usually win the bid, but sellers always have a choice in which offer they like the best. A letter can always sway them emotionally towards you or at least give you an opportunity to match the highest offer. I often ask my clients to write a bit about themselves as well as what attracted them most to the home- such as the beautiful cabinetry in the kitchen, or amazingly maintained backyard for their kids to play in!
If you know there are multiple offers with prices that you can’t possibly beat, you might think about factoring contingencies in your contract. Work with your Realtor in determining potentially dropping some requests in making your chances higher to the seller. But never put yourself at risk just to get the home you love! You might be tempted to drop the physical inspection contingency to make your offer stronger, but that could end up being very dangerous, especially for older homes.
Hope some of these tips come in handy for when you’re about to make your first offer!
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