Buying A Home And Making A Formal Offer? 2 Tips To Follow
Have you been looking for a house for a while and finally found one that you like? If so, you'll need to put in a formal offer with the seller and see if they accept it. If you have never done this before, you may not know what kind of offer you should make and what contingencies should be included in that offer. These tips will help prevent you from making any mistakes that could cost you the home.
Base Your Offer Amount On How Long The Home Was For Sale
When homes have been on the market for quite some time, it means that nobody is showing in interest on the property. The owner is paying money every single month in taxes, utilities, and mortgage interest that they are losing by letting the house sit there. If this is the case with the home you want, you could get away with offering below asking price and seeing what the owner responds with. The worst-case scenario is that they reject it and make a counter offer to you.
If the home has recently been put on the market and there are many people showing interest, a low offer could cause you to lose the home. Work with your agent to determine a strategy about how much higher than asking price you should go. You may even decide to not list a price on your offer, but use an escalation clause to outbid the top buyer by a specific dollar amount.
Don't Decline An Inspection Contingency
Some sellers state that they are selling their home as is, and request that you decline your rights to back away from the deal after the home inspection. Consider this a red flag, and do not agree to their terms. This could mean that something is wrong with the home, and they are afraid to lose a buyer after the problem is discovered during a home inspection.
Not only should you use a home inspection to determine if a home is worth buying, but use the info you learn to make changes to your offer. For instance, if it is discovered that the home has foundation problems, you could request that the seller fix the problem before the home is sold or give you a credit at closing to handle the repairs. No matter how you negotiate it, it is always in your best interest to have the inspection done.
For more information, talk to a professional like Celia Dunn Sotheby's International Realty.