Home sellers, rest assured that selling your home so that you can start living in Ukee needn’t be an overwhelming process. We have compiled here the most frequently asked home-seller questions that we have heard over the last past 2+ decades in real estate, and we are sharing them with you here so that you will have a good understanding of the need-to-knows of Home Selling.
Please check out Part One, Part Two and Part Three of this home sellers FAQ series if you haven’t already, to find out how to get the process started and moving without a hitch, and please follow along as we share the most important steps towards closing on your deal.
Q: How do we accept offers?
A: This will be a part of the strategy that we set up for your listing, but in most cases, I find it works well to accept offers as they come. The agent will either ask to send it to us and give us a set amount of time to consider it, or they will ask to meet so that the agent can present the offer to you in person. The agent must register the offer with my office, and then I will contact you.
Q: What about verbal offers?
A: There is no such thing. No buyer is serious until they are willing to put pen to paper. Often, it’s a ploy from an interested buyer to scoop info from me before they submit a written price. There’s a term I use from the Navy that says, “Loose Lips Sink Ships”. We don’t discuss anything until there’s a real offer on the table.
Q: Do you review the offer with me?
A: I always review the offers with you. Negotiating an offer is my favorite part of my job. If we have done a good job so far, there will have been lots of viewings and the offer has come in quickly; within the first 2 weeks. This gives me a very strong starting position because I can state how much interest there is in your home. Finding every way to sit in a position of advantage when negotiating a sale is key. We need buyers to love your home and to believe that if they don’t act quickly, they will lose out to someone else.
Q: What happens in multiple offers?
A: A listing can receive multiple offers even when we didn’t make it our strategy. If we present a very desirable product and have many viewings quickly, it is very possible to get more than one buyer putting in an offer. Again, the buyer agents must register the offer with my office, because once it’s registered then I can let all the other buyers know there’s an offer and now is the time to offer as well. Once we have received all the offers, we review them and you have 2 choices. A) You choose one that you will continue to negotiate with, and the other offers are discarded, or B) you push them all back for their best offer, if all the prices and/or terms are so close you can’t decide. There is the risk that none of them come back with a second offer, so we will discuss what is the best strategy given the situation. You CANNOT work with 2 offers simultaneously.
Q: What if most offers come in around the same price and one offer is substantially higher than the others, should I take it?
A: This is where my experience drives my instincts for who I think is the most solid buyer. Many things can fall apart after a deal is signed and you want to find the buyer who appears to be the most likely to complete the sale. Deposit cheques don’t show up, deals are scuttled over minor issues on the home inspection, and if the price is ridiculously high, the bank can call it out as too high and not provide the buyer financing. So my answer is maybe yes, but more often no, because when something looks too good to be true……..it usually is.
Q: What would be considered the strongest offer?
A: Money is only one of many considerations. If you had an offer that was slightly lower than you wanted but the buyer had no conditions of finance or inspection, that is just like money in the bank. Once you sign it, it’s a done deal and the home is sold firm immediately. As I mentioned, there’s a lot of ways for a deal to fall apart on conditions, so to have no conditions is king. Also, if you need a specific closing date, say if you have bought a home already and you don’t want to own 2 homes with 2 mortgages, getting your closing date might have value to you as well. I try to spy out a solid buyer by the way the buyer agent behaves; are they playing games or trying to pull tricks? Are they forthright, and on the level? The strongest offer, in the end, is the one that comes from the buyer who will actually close on the deal.
Did we miss a question? Ask it now! We are always happy to help you on your way to Start Living in Ukee, so please feel free to Contact Us.
