Thinking about making an offer on a house? I just put together an email for a client and realized that I’d love for all of our clients to see it!
“I think the unit in question is priced appropriately, but I also think you need to be prepared to offer over list price. Cash will absolutely make a difference, but often not at the expense of a higher offer. We’ll need to find out the seller’s motivation and expectations.
Here’s what we are seeing in the market:
- Competition – very rarely are there fewer than three or four offers on a property. The team bid on a few places this weekend and one of the condos had 17 offers but that is extremely rare.
- Seller friendly terms –
- Buyers are limiting inspection requests to issues that are major mechanical, structural or safety related – sometimes they are allowing for a $5000 limit, meaning they’ll ignore any issues below that threshold – ie: paying for the first $5000 of repairs brought to light by the home inspection. Note: you are not giving up your right to inspect or to walk away if the inspection results are unacceptable to you.
- Closing – offer to close at the seller’s convenience – some people are offering a free rent-back if the seller needs that.
- Deposit – first and second deposit are due at the conclusion of attorney review, prior to inspections. They should be hefty enough that the seller knows you are committed.
- Misc –
- Offer to pay for and schedule the township fire inspection
- Offer to pay for a home warranty that will cover the seller throughout the transaction
- Offer up your first born”
So if you are thinking about making an offer on a house, let’s work together in putting together the strongest offer possible.
Jennifer Blanchard Team
Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices NJ Properties
