Is This Your Situation: I’m a Home Buyer/Seller Navigating Multiple Offers
When you are searching for a home in a seller’s market, the seller holds all of the chips. There are usually not many other options, as inventory is very tight. Thus, every interested buyer in your area is looking at the same small pool of homes, which pushes the asking price up and sometimes out of reach. So how do you handle a multiple offer situation?
What Happens During a Multiple Offer Situation?
Generally speaking, when there is more than one offer on the table for the same house, the seller has a choice. They can either accept the better offer, or they can choose one as their backup option while working with the higher offer.
The danger here is that many buyers will rescind their offers and keep looking. However, in a hot seller’s market, buyers may not have many other options besides suspending their home search until another property goes on the market.
Competing with Multiple Bids
In this scenario, there are ways to get an advantage over other bidders when there are multiple offers for the house that you want. One way to scare off other bidders is to exceed the asking price. Adding a couple hundred dollars to the asking price may not cut it. You may need to add $5,000 to $10,000 to your offer to move to the head of the pack. Your agent can help you determine the right figure.
However, price is not the only factor that the seller is weighing. Another way to get an edge over other buyers is to make the process as easy as possible.
In other words, if you are willing to buy the home “as-is” or eliminate conditions in your purchase agreement, sellers sometimes give that more weight than an extra $5,000. Another way to boost your position when competing with multiple bids is to have all of your finances ready so that you can close the deal quickly.
You should talk to your agent, and if possible, to the seller, to get a feel for what’s most important to them. A buyer offering to pay $10,000 more but will require several conditions to be fulfilled before the contract is finalized, may not win the bid over someone offering just $2,500 more without conditions.
Weighing Multiple Offers
For sellers, you will have to determine your priority. Is selling faster more important to you or selling for the most money? Are you willing to wait through pages of conditions in order to get the top price for your home?
Again, in a seller’s market, the seller holds all of the chips. The best advice is not to rush into a deal. Take your time and weigh each offer objectively, then decide which one meets your priorities before you accept an offer.
For help navigating multiple offers on a home you’re buying or a home you’re selling, give me a call today.
Contact HOUSEofNaples.com at 239-784-7844 to discuss the Naples real estate market or to receive an in depth analysis of your home. We look forward to working with you!