AN OFFER...NOW WHAT?

When you have placed your home on the market to sell, the one thing you want more than anything is …      AN OFFER!   Nothing happens until you receive an offer.

Consider this…an offer is like a proposal of marriage.  When Mr. Right (Or Mr. Almost Right) decides to pop the big question, the one thing he fears the most is ------R-E-J-E-C-T-I-O-N------  There is no way to make a rejection feel warm and fuzzy or positive!

With that in mind, let’s talk about ways to respond to an offer on your home.

There are only 3 ways to respond to an offer you have received on your listed home; reject it (AKA “Take a hike”), accept it or counter it with another offer.

v Reject the offer: As with a marriage proposal there is no really easy way to say ‘NO’  It doesn’t matter the reasons, they won’t be heard any way at this point and you may come across as someone who could really care less about anyone but yourself, even though this may be the furthest thing from the truth.

v Accept the offer: When the offer and it’s conditions are acceptable to you, you are basically saying “SOLD”

v Counter the offer:  Some seller’s look at selling a home as a type of wrestling match.  Using twists, turns and other maneuvers to see just who will tire first and give in.  Here are a few things to think about when planning a counter.

 1. Try to understand where the buyer is coming from. Get to know the reasons he made the offer he made.  Remember both of you want to feel that you are getting a good value.

 2. Think about what you can give in order to get.  If you want full price, perhaps you can offer help with closing costs, or help to buy down points in order to make the buyers payments lower.

                                    3. Be positive.  Let the buyer know the things you do agree on, such as the                                           closing date, the down payment, earnest money or inclusions or exclusions.

Try not to be emotional.  Evaluate every offer as an opportunity; keep your negotiations from becoming personal, you will be way ahead of the competing homes owners in your neighborhood!

If you are looking to buy a home in the Houston / Galveston area, please start your search with us!