realtyreport
A Winning Offer
You might be in the market for a new home this spring, but so will a lot of other people. When you're ready to make an offer, here are a few things you can do to better the odds of your offer being the winning one.
- Work with a real estate sales representative. A winning price is an essential part of a winning offer — especially when bidding on a property whose owners are entertaining multiple offers. A real estate sales representative with expert knowledge of the area where you're buying is essential to determining a winning price, while ensuring you don't overpay.
- Get pre-approved for a mortgage. By doing so, you assure the sellers that if they accept your offer, they won't have to wait for you to get approved, which means a faster closing for them, and a better chance the deal won't fall through due to inability to secure financing.
- Make a clean offer — that is, one with minimal contingencies. Inspection contingencies are typical and to be expected. But if you make your offer conditional upon the sale of your current home, for example, the sellers might not want to wait for you and, other factors being equal, will likely accept an offer without such a condition instead.
- Consider handwriting a letter to the sellers. Discuss this with your real estate sales representative as a way to stand out in a multiple-offer arena. While it's not for everyone, sometimes an emotional appeal can be just what tips the scale in your favor.
