You and your agent invested hours, days, weeks and even months searching for the right house. Time spent visiting open houses. But now all your efforts pay off. You’ve found the one. It’s the right size, the right neighborhood and within the budget parameters. This is the home of your dreams. It’s time to make an offer.
Let your agent guide you. A great agent knows what the market will bear. They also have the experience and know-how to save you thousands on your home purchase. When you work with an agent, you can submit an excellent offer that the buyer wants to accept.
Don’t make the mistake many first-time homebuyers do of low-balling the offer. Of course, you want to pay as little as possible for the house, but too low of an offer, one that doesn’t account for proper market analysis, just frustrates the seller. If nearby, comparable homes recently sold for five to six percent less than the asking price, you can reasonably offer seven to nine percent less, leaving both of you room for negotiation. But if this is a seller’s market, offering less than the asking price exposes you to the risk of being outbid by other buyers. Your agent knows the temperature of the market. They’ve already experienced what buyers accept and what they reject. If this is the house you want, follow the guidance of your agent when making the offer.
Submitting a bid for real estate is a legally binding document. You don’t want to make a costly mistake that jeopardizes your purchase or forces you to buy a home that requires a lot of repairs and renovations to be livable.
Having a pre-approval sets you up for negotiating power. Remember that the seller actually wants to sell. And you actually want to buy. This is where a little give-and-take compromise wins the day. Once you make the offer, the seller counters, you resubmit, and they accept, your next action includes a home inspection. Your knowledgeable agent will have written contingencies into your offer for failures in significant systems that the inspection reveals. At this point, any HVAC, plumbing, electrical, foundation and roof systems that need repair are negotiable. Do not let anyone talk you out of doing an inspection. It is well worth the cost to protect yourself from major but hidden issues. Your agent can recommend a home inspector, or you can hire one yourself. Make sure they have all licenses and certifications.
The other primary contingency should be the final appraisal. To qualify for your loan, your lender will require an appraisal of the property’s fair market value. While the inspection protects you from future problems, the appraisal protects you from overpaying. If the appraisal comes in lower than your accepted offer, your agent will begin renegotiation for you.
Now you’re on your way to closing. The best day in the process. Use your professional real estate agent’s abilities to get you to the finish line.
Gary Rudden, Lisa Rudden, and Nick Bobruska
RUDDEN BOBRUSKA TEAM
What sets your team apart from other real estate teams?
There is no team out in the market that offers what we do. All of us are Realtors, but
we each have specialized roles, which make our team so unique!
After decades of living and selling real estate in the DMV, we have established
ourselves as one of the top real estate teams with our market expertise and
cutting-edge technology. Our savvy high-tech marketing is on every website
and social media source. We have a huge network with other top agents, which
helps to premarket homes and discover homes for buyers before they reach the
open market. Our services include professional in-house staging services, broker
expertise in negotiating and navigating contracts, and buyer representation in all
price ranges. Each client has different needs and we create a marketing plan based
on those needs.
Our most distinct feature is our in-house construction and renovation team. We
are literally a full-service, one-stop shop when selling or buying a home!
How does the in-house construction and renovation team work?
All work is managed and completed through our licensed and bonded construction
crew. No need to call outside contractors. We are like “HGTV,” but we just don’t
have a show! Whether it’s a small makeover or a major renovation, we do it all. Our
sellers love this aspect of our team because we make preparing your home for the
market so seamless. Our buyers love the advice and insight we can give for future
renovations and repairs.
Having a licensed Maryland Home Improvement contractor as part of our team
along with the knowledge, experience, commitment and services that we offer, truly
puts our team as a vanguard in the real estate industry.