We’ve been shopping for weeks and weeks and weeks…We’ve found the
perfect home…We’re ready to make an offer…then we find out a
bazillion other people are interested in the same property and we now
have some competition…yes…you guessed it…Multiple Offers….We’re
now being asked to submit our highest and best offer.
-What price should I go to?
-What contingencies should I still put within the offer?
-What if I pay too much?
-What if I lose?
-Are there really other offers?
Let’s start at the beginning:
Law
of Attraction states that “like attracts like”. I can’t tell you how
much this shows up in Big Bear Real Estate market. Once you LIKE
something…Everyone else has to LIKE it as well. This has happened to
me twice in the last 3 months and I figured I need to learn how to win
these, that’s my competitive side speaking….First lets start with how
we can try to avoid them.
Avoiding Multiple Offers (If possible)
Time
When
you find the home you like, make the offer. There is an old saying
that “The home you saw TODAY and want to think about TONIGHT…Will sell
today to the people that saw it YESTERDAY and thought about it LAST
NIGHT”. When you’re ready to make an offer, make an offer. The Big
Bear Lake Real Estate Market is heading towards becoming a sellers
market with low inventory. Don’t let this be what happens to you, lets
try to avoid it when we can.
Communication
The
more communication I can have, as your Realtor, with the listing agent
can only help see this coming. We can find things out such as have
there been any other showings, has there been any interest in the
property, is there a possibility someone else could be writing an
offer? With this information we are better equipped at writing our
offer, what it should be and what contingencies can be placed on it.
Days on the Market
When
a home comes on the market that you are interested in and you think its
a great deal, I’m sure there are many others out there feeling the same
way. We do not want that home to sit thru another weekend of shoppers
looking at it. If it is Tuesday at 3pm..come up here when you get off
work. Do your best to get here as soon as you can to view the property
as sometimes that’s what it takes to get it off the market and in your
possession quickly.
Winning Multiple Offers
First
things first, I can never guarantee you a win on a multiple offer
unless I have a crystal ball (which I need) or I can see all the cards
being played by other realtors and their clients, and that, simply won’t
happen.
That being said here are the things that we can do:
3% Earnest Money Deposit…or more….
Show
the seller you are a dedicated buyer and are willing to go in with a
healthy Earnest Money Deposit. It is a portion of the down payment that
you are willing to make on your home if you win the bid. Feel free to
go higher than the 3% if you love the home and have to have it. This is
just one way of showing the seller you are in it for the long haul.
Pre-Qualification Letter or Proof of Funds
Whether
you’re getting a loan or paying all cash the seller, warranted, likes
to see that you have what you say you have. This is becoming normal
practice to even turn in with an offer so have it ready. This too will
show the buyer that you are ready to move in.
Escrow Period
Generally
the Big Bear Lake Real Estate Market is second home owners, not needing
time to move out. From my experience they are all looking to close 30
days or sooner. By knowing this ahead of time do whatever it takes to
be ready to do this or close sooner, still allowing ourselves the
inspection period that we need to do.
Contingencies
Limit
them or negate them completely. If you know you are in multiple offers
there’s limited amounts of requests to the seller to pay for closing
costs, inspections, work, etc that we should be asking for. Remember
the easier we make if for the seller to let us take over their house
combined with the price that we are willing to pay makes us look more
attractive.
Price
Probably the most important
thing in the offer is the price. What you want to do is set the price at
what you feel most comfortable
with and feel that you wouldn’t go a dime above if someone else did.
I.e.
Say your Highest and Best Offer was at $150,000 on a $149,000
property. I always ask yourself to imagine that someone won the home
with an offer of $150,500. Would you be upset? Would you have paid
that price? If the answer is yes, keep doing that until you get
yourself saying no- That’s our offer.
3 Most Important Things About Multiple Offers
1. Be open minded to going over asking price. Of the recent Multiple Offer situations I’ve been in the winning bid has been over the asking price
in every single case. Be prepared for this if you really want the
property. By pulling comparative market analysis we can justify paying
that price.
2. Remember there are no second chances and no negotiations in a
Multiple Offer Situation. All agents and their clients turn in the best
they are willing to do and the seller chooses whom they are going
with.
3. I hate losing….and I despise telling anyone
that we lost. Let’s not allow that to happen when we come across this
bridge by doing the recommended things above.