Are you smack in the middle of house hunting?
That’s fine because you’ll learn how to make a winning house offer today.
If so, you’ve spent countless hours poring over listings and maybe even an open house.
You know what they tell you: You need to make an offer.
But how much should you offer for a property, and what will make your offer stand out from the others?
Even if an offer is accepted, that doesn’t mean you’re the winner.
The seller still has the upper hand in most cases.
For your offer to succeed, you must know how to write a winning house offer appealing to the seller.
Below are 9 tips on making a house offer that will guarantee success.
The 9 Tactics To Make House Offers That’ll Win
Be Ready To Show Your Pre-Approval
Showing pre-approval from a lender before you make an offer can help strengthen your position with a seller.
When a seller knows you’re serious and financially able to complete the transaction, they’ll be more likely to take your offer seriously.
You’ll also put less pressure on the seller to accept your offer if they know you’re already pre-approved.
Make Your Most Reasonable Offer
You should always make your best offer before the listing expires. The seller is likelier to select the most reasonable offer, especially in a deadlock situation.
Another way to beat the market for a quick win is to target homes before the listings go live on real estate sale platforms like realtor.ca.
You could get a good deal and avoid paying additional fees to your agent.
Get Personal
When you’re making an offer, be friendly with the seller. Most sellers like to know more about the potential buyers of their house.
They want to know that you are trustworthy and can be relied on to complete the purchase process.
If the seller is wary of you or feels they need to trust you, they may ignore your offers.
In the worst-case scenario, they might not even reply to you or give you a chance to make an offer. Here are several ways how to be a friendlier buyer:
- Share personal details so the seller knows you have good intentions. You can share your occupation, marital status, or whether you have kids in the picture. This could help them feel more comfortable dealing with you and may reassure them that you are not trying to scam them.
- Treat the seller with respect. You can also show appreciation for their home and the work they’ve put into it. Being kind and considerate can only help your case.
- Make it clear that you’re willing to walk away from the deal: If you’re serious about buying their property, let them know this as early as possible. You can tell the seller’s team that there are other houses on the market, and they should contact you if they change their mind. You can also tell them you want to save their time, not just BS-ing them.
Keep The Contingencies
One of the biggest mistakes buyers make is waiving contingencies.
You may waive your rights and contingencies to make your offer appealing to the seller. However, waiving your contingencies can be a costly mistake.
You should think twice before making such a move.
A contingency allows your offer to be valid for a specific period, allowing you to leave the deal without losing your purchase deposit.
This includes the inspection contingency, which lets you pull out of the deal or renegotiate the price if something comes up during the pre-purchase inspection.
With a money-back warranty, you can also cancel the deal if you find something severe enough during an inspection.
With this warranty, you won’t lose your deposit because it only covers repairs necessary to make the property whole.
Waiving your contingencies is risky because the seller might not have intentionally disclosed something.
Add Escalation Clause
You can also add escalation clauses to position yourself better to buy the house.
An escalation clause allows you to match any offers the seller has received.
This lets the seller know that if they’ve had another offer come in, yours will be right behind it.
You can also include an expiration date on your offer, which means it will be taken off the table after a specific time. With this clause, the seller will respond to your offer quickly.
Escalation clauses are significant because they let you know whether or not your offer is competitive.
Write A Personal Letter
Another tactic to use when making an offer is writing a personal letter to the seller’s real estate agent or the listing agent.
You can discuss why you’re interested in their house and what you love about the neighbourhood.
Be sure to note your excitement about making an offer on their property and whether they are open to it.
This will create a positive tone that could help the seller’s team get your offer through to the seller. Writing a personal letter shows the seller’s agent you’re an enthusiastic buyer willing to go above and beyond for them.
Avoid writing too much about yourself; sellers don’t care that much, and it may even annoy them.
Offer An All-Cash Deal If You Can
Offering an all-cash deal lets the seller know you’re serious about buying their house.
You don’t have to detail your source of funds, but you should say that you do not need financing to purchase the property.
Offering an all-cash deal is also great because it allows for quick closings and no contingencies. You can purchase the house without being held up by financing or inspections.
An all-cash deal also makes your offer stand out over other buyers who might need financing to purchase.
Have Your Inspector On Speed Dial
Another tactic for helping you accept your conditional offer is having your inspector ready to go whenever you make an offer.
Having your inspector on speed dial lets the seller know you’re a serious buyer and want a quick sale without any problems.
As with the all-cash deal, this tactic makes your offer stand out among those needing financing.
Be Available To Answer Questions
Make yourself available to answer questions and communicate with your real estate agent. When you write an offer, include your phone number and email address so the agent can contact you.
The negotiation process of home-buying is fast, especially if there are other buyers on the other side.
You want to respond to the seller’s requests as fast as possible.
You don’t want the other potential buyer to respond before you do. Otherwise, you might be late to the party and lose the deal.
Conclusion
Making a winning house offer means guaranteeing your financing with a solid pre-approval letter, showing the seller you are serious with a personal letter, and being available to respond to the seller’s questions as fast as possible.
