5 Tips For Making a Winning Offer on a Home

If you are trying to buy a house right now, you’ve realized that it’s a jungle out there! Low inventory, high demand, high interest rates, and skyrocketing prices have all converged to form a perfect storm of misery for buyer’s.

There is very much a sense of despair amongst buyer’s right now, and rightly so. Many have given up. Other’s drag themselves to showings while muttering under their breath about wasting their time.

But all is not lost! despite the odds, there are several things buyers can do to help tip the tables in their favor.

• Get preapproved for a mortgage. This goes without saying right now. Almost every seller requires a preapproval letter because they can. Requiring a preapproval letter helps weed out the tire kickers and saves everyone time. If possible, use a reputable local lender for your mortgage. They can be easier to work with, especially where communication is concerned.
• Know your budget. Knowing your budget before your start looking at houses will help keep you grounded. House hunting can become an emotional process, and it’s easy to get swept up in the emotions of finding a house you really love, despite the price. Part of your budget must include the numbers for your mortgage payment (principal and interest), taxes, insurance, utilities, and maintenance. Too many people overlook things like taxes and insurance. Both can add considerably to your monthly payment thus making an otherwise affordable looking home unaffordable.
• Decide on must haves vs nice to haves. Write these down! What must your house have? Consider the basics like number of bedrooms and bathrooms and square footage, but don’t forget about things like central air, a deck, or a garage. Also write down things you would like, but aren’t necessarily deal breakers. Having a solid list will make your house hunting much more focused and maximize your time.
• Decide where you can be flexible. Is your desired closing date flexible? Do you want and inspection (yes, you do) or can you live with an inspection for informational purposes only? Can you put more money down for the earnest money deposit? Do you want to offer to help pay the seller’s closing costs? Are you willing to rent the house back to the seller for a period of time?
• Be prepared to move. Not move as in moving your furniture, move as in making a decisive decision to buy. If you’ve done your homework and you are as specific as possible you will be prepared to make a decisive move and make the best possible offer for the house you want. Things go quickly in this market, and being prepared can make the difference between getting a house you want and losing out.

Here’s a bonus sixth tip: Have thick skin! You will probably hear the word “NO” numerous times. You may be subjected to seemingly unfair competition or unreasonable demands from sellers. You may have a house all locked up only to have someone swoop in with a cash offer that supplants yours.

It’s tough out there. It’s frustrating, maddening, and mystifying. The worst thing you can do is to let it get to you. Learn to take a deep breath. Learn to let things go. Remember that this is not the end of the world. The house of your dreams is out there, but you will never find it if you let things get you down until you eventually give up.