After you list your home for sale, you may think you've done everything right. Priced it correctly, staged it beautifully and put your home up for sale at the right time. The reality is that buyers can be full of surprises and nearly all of those surprises can be fairly predictable. For example, they rarely pay list price, they try to discount or dismiss improvements you've made, their inspections usually turn up something for you to fix and they may have terms or contingencies that you weren't counting on. The most common is the buyer needing to sell their home before purchasing yours.
At some point in the sale of your home you're going to have to negotiate. Negotiating doesn't mean you win and the buyer loses, or you lose and the buyer wins. It's simply a way to make some compromises so that you don't lose the buyer and the buyer doesn't lose your house. Negotiation is designed for both of you to get what you want.
Once someone has made an offer on your home don’t make these three negotiating mistakes that could ruin the sale of your home.
1. Demanding top dollar for an aging property
The market is better than it was during the recession, but an older home that hasn't been updated or maintained very well can't compete with updated or new homes. It’s suggested that interiors need updating every ten years because color, patterns and textures change. So if your home hasn’t seen a paintbrush in over a decade make sure you take that into account when setting your list price.
2. Getting angry at a low offer
Buyers usually make an initial offer for your home that is lower than you feel it's worth. Don't take it personally and get upset it's just a negotiating tactic. If the buyer didn't want the home, they wouldn’t have made an offer, so at least you know the buyer wants to negotiate.
Most buyers know that sellers won’t accept a really low offer they are just setting a starting point for negotiations. Your job is to find out what the accepted price will be at the end of negotiations. Ask your agent to speak with the buyer's agent for the reasoning behind the low offer before you provide a written response. The buyer could be using inaccurate comps, they could be trying to purchase a home out of their budget, or they may be investors who are looking for a good deal. Remember, no offers or extremely low offers could be an indicator that your home is over priced.
3. All or nothing attitude
Always ask questions before you say no to an offer. Do your best as a seller to find out what the buyer wants and if the two of you can compromise and sell the house. Negotiations and communications keep the buyer interested.
If you’re in a seller's market, you can expect buyers to give you multiple bids for your home, if that’s the case you have a leg up in negotiations. On the other hand, in a buyer’s market, your buyer could simply walk away and find another home to buy because they don’t need to negotiate. You need to be flexible on the points that count most with the buyer, like move-in dates, and the buyer should be more flexible with you on repairs or other contingencies.
Remember, you want to sell your home and your buyer wants to buy it. Maximize your offers with smart negotiating techniques and when you buy your next home you'll be more experienced and a better negotiator knowing the seller's side of things.
