Making an Offer on Your Spokane Dream Home: 4 Tips
You’ve found the home you’ve been looking for. It’s in the perfect Spokane, Washington neighborhood that you wanted. It has all the features you want and is within your budget. The problem? There are other people interested in it, too. Of course, there are. So how can you make sure that you’re the one who gets it? Consider these tips for making sure you get the home you really want.
1. Have Mortgage Loan Approval in Place
If you are not able to make a cash offer on a home, the first thing you should do before even shopping for a home is to make sure you have financing in place. Most lending institutions are willing to give you pre-approval for a mortgage loan, so make sure you get it. You will know exactly how much house you can afford, and you can make an offer on the home you want with the confidence that, if it is accepted, the deal will go through.
The pre-approval process can be time-consuming. You have to compile a lot of financial information and submit it to the lending institution. When you do this first, you can address any problems when it won’t cause you stress and delay. The last thing you want is to lose a deal because you run into hiccups with paperwork or mistakes. Prepare yourself for success, instead.
2. Work With a Real Estate Agent
No amount of internet research can replace the services, knowledge, and insight that an experienced agent will provide. A good Spokane real estate agent is familiar with all the areas of Spokane, often down to the street. The agent will have a finger on the pulse of what’s happening in the market, and usually knows other agents in the area. They may find out about homes before they go on the market. When you find the home you want, your agent will do everything possible to make sure you get the deal you want.
Real estate agents know the real estate negotiation process and will help you to craft a strong offer that stands out from the competition. They will likely have some “inside information” on the house’s sale history and often can find out about the buyer’s motivation. An agent also has contacts that can move the process along mortgage brokers, house inspectors, title companies, and so on. In short, a real estate agent is your best bet in making sure that the entire process runs smoothly and that you will get the house you want.
3. Don’t Lowball the Seller
If you really want the house, don’t jeopardize the deal by trying too hard to get a bargain. Remember that sellers are looking to get the best price they can, and they are entitled to a fair offer. Lowballing them not only risks you getting your offer rejected, but can “poison the water” with that seller and with the seller’s agent, making you a less attractive buyer moving forward. If you want to offer less than the asking price, make a reasonable offer that still leaves some room for negotiation. You want the seller to know that you are serious, and a reasonable offer encourages the seller to make a counteroffer that’s closer to your ideal price.
4. Draft a Good Offer
Your agent will provide you with information on sale prices for comparable homes on the market. With this data, you can take into account the seller’s asking price and determine what a fair offer is. But don’t stop there.
Think hard about how much you’re willing to pay, and talk to your agent about the market you are in. Is someone else likely to make an offer on this same home? Are prices rising, or going down? If they are going down, then a solid offer in the range of the current market price is more attractive to the seller, who probably wants to make sure the house is sold before its value goes down further. In a rising market, consider making a slightly higher bid. It will make your offer stand out, and you probably will not lose anything since the house should gain in value once the deal closes.
Also, look at other factors that can make your offer more attractive. Is yours a cash offer? Are you willing to close quickly? Are you willing to rent back for a few months? Is your offer contingent on the sale of your current home? All of these things can affect the attractiveness of your offer. If this really is your dream home, talk to your agent about finding ways to make your offer match the seller’s preferences.
For example, rather than make a contingent offer, consider getting a bridge loan so that you cannot only avoid contingency but can readily agree to a short closing or a rent-back situation. Rely on your agent’s experience and resources to help you put yourself in a position to get the home you want. If you are in the market for your dream home, be sure to keep these four tips in mind so that you can position yourself to succeed. If you want more information on how and where to start, or if you just want some helpful advice on how to navigate today’s competitive housing market in Spokane, contact us at Legacy Group Real Estate. We would be happy to assist you with your home-buying journey!