Great tips!  A counter is always a good sign in my opinion. 

Dawn ~ I agree.  Many buyers feel they have lost because the bank did not accept their offer as they presented it.

Very good tips.  Buyers need to know what to expect before they place an offer to a bank.

Rosemary - This is a very well written article.  All very valid points.  I like what the new look of your blog, btw.

Thanks for the imput It will help me somewhere down the line, I am sure. I think it is a special relationship to have a mom/daugther team(side note).

Randy ~ exactly.  If the buyers find out how REOs work.  Our job will be or should be easier.

Jesse ~ Thank you.  I have Mike Mueller to thank for helping me with the header. Mike is a great resource and person.  Thanks Mike.

Greg ~ Boomark this for later.  I love working with my daughter - it is a blessing and a joy!  She is a great daughter to have.  Its fun too.

I just had a deal blow up this week because the buyers wouldn't counter the bank's first response to their offer. Cmon!!  I told the buyers agent up front to start out lower in the price because more than likely her clients were not going to want to accept the bank's addendum and could come up in price in their second offering.  The second offering didn't come in.  They could have countered and offered $5K more at least to see if they would budge. Unbelieveable!!  I warned them from the get go what to expect!

Susan ~ I know how you must feel.  Been there done that!  They don't listen and then they expect the bank to bend - which we know they usually won't.  I just had a list price offer that feel through because the buyer than wanted to turn the purchase into a traditional purchase and not play by the REO rules.  So it is going to be up high.  I am sticking and climbing it, one step at a time!  lol

Rosemary, I love it!! Stick and climb, climb and stick!!  That's great!!

Susan , sticking to it is the hard part! smile

Very well written blog!

A counter should be viewed as the starting of dialogue.  This means that the bank is interested in making a deal happen, but they cannot give the asset away.

It is, however, important to try to get the listing agent to reveal how the asset manager thinks.  I have asset managers that will not go through more than one round of countering before calling highest and best or take it or leave it.  I have one asset manager who will usually counter back and forth until a deal is struck or the buyer gives up.  She does not do it to be difficult, she does it because she has to have a certain number hit and will go around as many times as it takes to hopefully get a contract ratified.

Buyers and buyers agents also need to remember that there may be many layers of decision making.  While some asset managers hold almost all authority, others may have to go up the food chain to get a certain offer accepted.  I have found that in-house REO departments for big direct lenders typically have more authority than a loan servicer or REO outsourcing company who has to answer to the various investors who own the asset.

Jesse ~ thank you for that information - good input.  There are so many lines to this REO business that it always helps to share the information to help agents and buyers understand the process.  The more that truly understand how REOs work, the easier the job will be to get an accepted offer and CLOSE!

Thank you for the tips.  There is no free lunch out there where the banks and REO's are concerned.

Robert ~ I totally agree.  No free lunch, no starbucks, no nothing.