When the shopping is all done and you’ve made your choice, it’s offer time. There’s a mixed bag of emotions ranging from excitement, to nervous, to “is this really happening?!”. For us to ensure we’re putting the best offer forward, there’s some homework to be completed first.
Understand the offer instructions. We need to review what’s being asked by the seller and then write our offer to match the instructions. Common asks by the seller are offer dates and times; the seller may want to see offers on a specific date during a defined time period. If that’s the case, we’ll want to ensure we adhere to these wants.
Touch base with the listing agent. I’ll use this time to learn as much as I can about the sellers wants. Details such as closing dates or what’s included and/or excluded from the listing may not be documented in the listing details, but this is good information for us to have when we’re building your offer. Doing our homework in advance can’t do any harm, and has the potential to set us up for success.
Market research is a must. We can’t submit an offer without knowing what the market is telling us. I’ll review what’s happening in the neighbourhood and surrounding area to get a full picture of current market trends. This is pretty straightforward; we need to know what the market is telling us so our offer isn’t completely out of line and the buyer makes an informed decision.
Assess the listing activity. Knowing the number of offers we’re up against is important. It’ll help us be creative in our offer so we can position ourselves accordingly. If we don’t have to come out with our best offer in the beginning, we won’t!
Put it on paper and write the offer. It’s go time – time for us to document what we’re offering to purchase the home. It’s also time to protect you legally with terms and conditions that will ensure your needs/wants are identified and agreed to.
Present. Negotiate. Buy the home. I can’t sugar coat this – it’s a stressful time. There can be lots of back and forth between us and the sellers, lots of emotional discussions, but in the end, once the paperwork is signed, it’ll all be worth it.
