Are you ready to purchase one of the many beautiful homes for sale you’ve spotted in your area or in an area you’d like to live in? If you’ve never purchased a home before making an offer may sound a little intimidating. However, it shouldn’t be.
Making an offer on a home is simple when you work with a reputable real estate company that you trust and who has a solid reputation for excellence. Here’s how to make an offer on a home the right way.
Make Sure the House is Reasonably Priced
Do this before making an offer. You don’t want to make an offer on a house that is already over-priced. Ask your agent to find out how the sellers came by their asking price based on the comps in the area and price per square footage. Your realtor will have a good idea if the home is overpriced or if it’s a reasonable.
Discover Your Competition
Ask your agent if any other offers have been made on the house and for how much. This will let you know if you have competition for the house, as well as the likelihood of your offer being accepted, once you submit it.
Learn How Eager the Seller is to Sell
How long has the house been on the market? If it’s been there for a while, the seller might be eager to sell soon, and more willing to entertain a lower offer.
Sometimes eager sellers will consider offers much lower than the asking price. Knowing how long the house has been on the market will let you know if a low offer is likely to be accepted and give you confidence in making that offer.
Regardless of what the asking price is, make your offer one that you can afford. Don’t go over the amount the bank is willing to give you and if you need more money, talk with your mortgage lender before accepting.
Learn Why the House is for Sale
Sometimes it’s important to know why the home is for sale. If it’s for sale for personal reasons, that’s a good indication that nothing is wrong with it. However, if the home is on the market because it’s been recently flooded, had a lot of damage or is falling apart, you may want to look elsewhere because it could cost you more in the long run.
Personal reasons many sellers put their homes on the market are:
- Divorce
- Moving to another state for a job (or other reason)
- Already purchased another home and must sell this one to close on it
Make Your Offer
Once you know the background of why the house is for sale at its current price, you will have a better idea of how much money to offer the seller.
It might be more than the asking price, if there is a lot of competition for the home. It may be less, if the seller is highly motivated.
Make your offer through your agent and wait to find out if it is accepted. But remember, do not offer something you cannot afford or you could run into financial trouble or trouble getting the price approved through your mortgage lender.
Are you in the Terre Haute, Indiana area and looking for homes for sale – or already found one? Contact Berkshire Hathaway Home Services today.