In your search for the ideal home, you may come across a situation where you have finally found the ideal home, but the asking price is too high. It’s time for the skilled art of negotiation!
With our current hot real estate market, sellers have more of an edge than buyers, as there are multiple offers for a single listing. But if you have a real estate professional who is skilled in the art of negotiation, you may get closer to your price than you think.
Here’s how:
- Make your lower offer work for the seller. You can offer compromises and concessions, thus making your lower offer more palatable to the seller. By just being flexible on the closing date could make a difference. If the seller is facing a gap between the sale of their home and the purchase of their new one, you could offer an opportunity to lease the home from you for a month or two, especially if you have no time pressure on the move in. If you don’t need assistance from the seller in closing costs, it could be seen as a big plus on your side. A pre-approval letter from your mortgage broker or bank gives the seller that assurance that your financing is secure and the deal will not likely fall through due to lack of finance.
- How motivated is the seller. Here your agent may be able to help you. If your agent learns, for example, that the sellers have closed on another property and need to move asap, you could use this knowledge to your advantage.
- Making the asking price work for you. You can meet the asking price and request additional concessions, so in effect, you are getting your price or close to it.