Did you get an offer from a potential house buyer, but the terms are too strict, and the price is too low? It can be nerve-wracking to negotiate but don’t fret because you can always do something about it without taking too much value off from your home buyer. Here are some things you can do to help negotiate smoothly and successfully:
Get to Know Your Buyer
Even before your buyer lays down the initial offer, make sure that you get an idea of what he/she really wants. Some people cannot always clearly define what they want in a house, so it’s up to you to identify what makes their hearts flutter. For example, if your buyer works in the creative industry, you may want to identify an inspiring space where he/she could work freely.
Be Ready to Explain Things Logically
When your buyer’s price differs significantly from your asking price, it might be because your information/data are misaligned. It would be best if you sit down and talk about how you came up with your asking price as accurately as you can. Use facts and numbers as much as possible, and avoid using emotional reasons such as, “this was a gift to me, so it’s special,” or “this was our first house, and we put blood and sweat into it,” etc.
Always Remind Your Buyer What Value/s They Get
Instead of highlighting the features of your house, try focusing more on the benefits your buyers can get from those features. For example, if your home is solar-powered, tell your buyer how much electrical costs savings they can have per year.
This follows that any buyer or consumer doesn’t really care about what you have, but they care about what they can get from it. No matter how expensive, new, and functional your features are, if they are not helpful for your buyer, then they may not be worth anything at all.
Give Your Home Buyer a Sense of Control
You want your buyer to feel as comfortable as possible. One way to do this is by making them think that what they want matters the most through asking them instead of telling them. For example, instead of saying, “You need to make a decision today,” you can say, “Would you be able to make a decision today? Because …”. Another way to make your buyers feel comfortable is to use affirming language. This shows that you really are listening and that you value your buyer’s inputs.
Set a Target Close at the End of the Month
If your buyer is renting another house or is still paying mortgage for their current home, closing a deal at the end of the month will keep your buyer from paying the next month’s rent — assuming that he/she can move in immediately after the sale. This may not be that significant, but you never know how tight your buyer is with his/her expenses as well.
Take note that the end of the month may not be applicable to everyone. The key is to know when it would be more practical for your buyer to close the deal (without explicitly asking). It may be terrifying to set your target close date, but this is necessary unless you are open to waiting for a possibly long time (with the possibility that your buyer may back out after letting you wait for months).
Offer a Home Warranty
A home warranty or a home builder warranty covers structural damages as a result of your contractor’s poor workmanship or low-quality building materials. This is applicable if you had your house renovated before the sale. Home warranties only cover parts of the house that were serviced and should be entered into by you and the contractor.
You can transfer the warranty to your homebuyer because these things are valid between 1-10 years, depending on the coverage. Additionally, your buyer doesn’t have to pay extra for this warranty, so it would seem like it’s an added value.
Use Uneven Numbers When Setting a Price
An asking price with a whole number is clearly an estimated value. While real estate prices are “carefully estimated” values, you still want to show your buyer that you put effort and thought into your price. Research done by UC Berkley showed that items listed in multiples of $100 on eBay received offers that were 8-12% lower than the original asking price. And this is also observed in the real estate industry.
If your buyer’s initial offer is too low for you, make a counteroffer price with uneven numbers — instead of $185,000, make it $183,457 or so. Again, using uneven numbers will give an impression that you are not playing around.
If you are having a difficult time convincing your buyer to meet you halfway, you can consider selling your house to us at Spire Home Buyers. We can close as fast as seven days, and we can buy your house for cash! For more information, call us at (678) 318-1801 or fill-up the form below.