Time is of the essence - in more ways than one!

“Time is of the essence.” I must have heard those five words a million times when I took my real estate education courses.  Agents must pay strict attention to contract deadlines, or the results could be disastrous for their clients.

In today’s hot real estate market, time is of the essence in other ways as well. Here in the Houston area, homes are flying off of the shelves. When you find a home you like, you had better make an offer right away, or it might be gone the next day.

If a house is in good condition, shows well, and is priced reasonably, it probably won’t last long, and there could very well be multiple offers.

In fact, I have found that there might not be time for a second look, and if there IS an opportunity for a second look, I always take a contract with me to the second showing so my client can sign right then and get the offer submitted.

There also is not much time for back and forth negotiations. It’s best to make your best offer right off the bat, because your offer is probably not the only one the sellers will be looking at.

Just this week I wrote a CASH offer on a house for one of my buyers, and their offer was about two percent OVER asking price. There were five offers on the table, and my client’s offer was not the only one over asking price.  Lucky for us, his offer was accepted.  But if we had waited even a few more hours to submit the offer, he would have lost out.

It’s a changing world in real estate. Buyers used to have the luxury of looking at a home several times, and taking their time before making an offer. Not so much now. There is no fooling around with second and third looks at a house, or wasting time with low offers. Better make your best offer and make it fast! Time is of the essence!

For assistance buying and selling homes in the Friendswood, Pearland, League City, Alvin, and Clear Lake areas, you can depend on local agent Rose King for excellent service!