Don’t be cheap - Making Offers on a House

Posted on January 22, 2010 
Filed Under Buying Your New Home, Listing and Selling Your Home

Who does not want a bargain?  Also, who wants people to think that you paid too much for anything, including your house?  There is going to be a fine balance between paying the “right” amount for a house and paying too much.  Where is that point?

Ask your real estate agent for comparable information in the market area.  Ask for information on similar style houses and those that have just recently sold.  Take note of houses that were or are on the market for long periods of time.  Think that one of the issues for these houses is the price. 

If you develop a long list of things that you would change in the house (kitchen counters, bathrooms, flooring), do not expect the seller to agree with you that these are needed or that they influence the negotiations.  Rather, if there are issues that the house inspector found that will cause major expense, you may want to either walk from the deal or re-negotiate on the basis of these issues - roof repairs that were not visible from the street, foundation issues, etc.  If the problem was readily apparent to you when you first saw the house, such as a falling apart garage and fence, the Seller will expect that you to have already taken these into account with your initial offer. 

When putting in your offer, don’t be so cautious with your price that the Seller will be insulted and reject the offer.  Try to find a balance between what you would like to pay and what the Seller would like to get.  Art and Science.

Both under and over paying may leave “egg on your face”.

 Photo credit:  Eggs in perspective @ http://www.flickr.com/photos/alancleaver/3319673607/in/set-72157606825074174/

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