When you sit down to negotiate the purchase of a new home, do you know what’s on the table?
Are you about to have a conversation that’s only about money, or is there more to talk about?
It’s perfectly natural to feel some anxiety or nervousness at this stage of the purchase because you have a lot of money on the line.
When the market performs strongly, sellers will believe they have the upper hand. While they might be confident they’ll find other buyers, you should be wary of paying too much for a property simply to get the deal done.
It would help if you explored all the possibilities that will convince the owner to sell to you: and that’s a much wider set of options than simply the money.
As an experienced agent in our neighborhood, I often have clients who will want to sell quickly, or they’d like to sell and then rent the property for a short period while they seek their next home.
Here are a few more scenarios and tips that may help you sweeten the deal without having to reach deeper into your pocket.
Go gently
If you love the property, you should approach the negotiation with care. Dispensing a “take it or leave it” attitude usually ends badly for the buyer. Know your boundaries but stay optimistic.
Know your power
While it’s a good idea to be flexible, it’s worth remembering every concession you make has value. Negotiation is not a conversation about how much you’re going to bend to the other party’s will. Your agent should be all across this.
It’s a date
It’s worth exploring whether the seller would like to be flexible on the closing date of the sale or their moving out deadline. Sometimes, you can ease the pressure on the seller by agreeing to a longer or shorter time than the average six weeks.
Repairs
Your contract will feature a contingency that the property passes building inspections satisfactorily. If there are problems, you can try to use these to reduce the price or offer to take the property regardless, letting the seller know you’ll have to pay extra to fix issues.
Additional purchases
Many sellers are happy to offload furniture and appliances with the home. Your offer to make additional purchases or roll them into the existing asking price can work for everyone.
Waiving the warranty
America is lucky to have a system where the seller will take insurance to protect the buyer from faults for 12 months. That doesn’t happen in every country. The average premium is $500-$1000, and you can offer to pay the fee or forego the policy to get the seller on your side.