Tuesday, January 29, 2019

If you’re searching for a home to buy, you probably know by now that a lot goes into that all-important offer you make on the house you’ve finally decided is the one for you. Hopefully, you’ve connected with a professional, informed real estate agent who has great knowledge of the local market and has been able to advise you on the best offer to make, based on a comparative market analysis and other factors.

But what about negotiating? Is it possible that sellers will accept less than what they’re looking for? In certain situations, you can negotiate the price of the home. Here are certain factors that make negotiating possible:

You can buy the home with cash. If you’re coming to the table with an all-cash deal, that’s a very attractive option for most sellers, which means they’ll probably be willing to come down on the price.

You’re not in a hurry. If you don’t have a house that needs to be sold before you buy a new one, or some other pressing situation that makes moving into the house time sensitive, you have the luxury of toying with price a bit. If the deal falls through, you won’t be left homeless.

The sellers are under duress. Ask your agent if there are any particular reasons that the sellers might be under pressure to move things along, such as a divorce, a financial emergency or the need to quickly move elsewhere.

You’ve been pre-approved for a mortgage. While this is more the rule than the exception in today’s market, if you’re pre-approved for a mortgage, it shows that you’re a credible buyer and, therefore, it may entice the seller to come down a bit on price.

A less than favorable inspection. If a costly repair is revealed during the inspection, you can negotiate on price as opposed to asking the seller to make the repairs.

While any of these situations could warrant a price reduction, keep in mind that if you’ve found your dream home in your dream location, and you can afford the offer you’re making, go for it. You don’t want to risk losing the home over unnecessarily haggling on price.

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