Tips for Winning Offers

At any given time, even in a slower market there can be more than one offer on a property for sale. In today’s market despite the current economic situation the buyer demand is still outweighing the supply for many types of homes. So how can you make your offer stand out among the rest? Here are some great strategies to consider.

Appraisal gap coverage

You may find yourself in a bidding situation where you offer more than asking, but that can be an issue when it comes time for the home to be appraised. What if your offer is more than the home appraises for? You can offer appraisal gap coverage as a solution. Essentially you can offer to pay any overage of the appraisal value in cash.

Increase earnest deposit

Your earnest money deposit amount shows your intent and level of commitment to buying the home. There may be some outs should there be issues with inspection or the like, but the more money you put down the higher the risk. In a seller’s mind this shows that the deal may be more solid with a better chance of closing.

Tighten up inspection

You can do this a few ways. First, instead of a 10 day period for inspection, tighten this up to 3-5 days. Also, once you have your inspection you may want to accept the list of items that are found and deal with them on your end unless they are truly so substantial they make you no longer interested in purchasing the home. 

Pay your own closing costs

Buying a home requires a lot of money up front for your down payment but also your closing costs. For those with less money on hand or especially first time buyers it can be common to request that the seller cover a certain amount of the closing costs. It would be advisable to not do this if entering a competitive bid situation if you can avoid it as a seller will most likely choose a deal where they don’t have to pay.

Escalation clause

This can be a very powerful option for a winning dollar offer. Essentially you can craft an offer stating something like you will pay $1,000 more than any other offer up to a certain purchase price. This can give you a big advantage if any of the competing offers are within your capped amount. 

Accommodate seller timing

This can be done a few ways as well. First, if you can be flexible you can alert the seller you can close in the fastest possible time or that you can work with them on a more preferable closing time. Sometimes sellers need more time before moving to their next home. Finally, should they need to close but stay in the home a short time you could provide occupancy to them. In cases like these you can even collect rent or a fee for them to remain in the home as short term tenants.