5 Tips Sellers Would Give Buyers if They Could

There are things that sellers can see from their side of the table that you cannot. Sellers have insights into their own mindsets that, if revealed, can be very powerful tools in helping buyers optimize their approach, offer and interactions with the seller to both buyer’s and seller’s benefit. So, in the interest of helping both buyers and sellers move closer to an outcome that helps them both achieve their mutual goal, here are a few of the insider secrets from the seller’s side of the bargaining table that they would tell buyers, if they could.

 1.   Trashing my house doesn’t make me want to sell it to you at a discount.  To a seller, their home is their castle. It’s the place where they’ve raised their children, and has been the backdrop for many of their memories.
All that said, the average seller knows most things about their home that you can see with the naked eye. So if you, as a buyer, think trash talking a home, pointing out obvious flaws or issues is a good strategy for getting the price down, rest assured that you are not telling the seller anything they didn’t already know when they set the list price. In fact, you might very well be doing your case more harm than good, as this “strategy” is highly likely to alienate and insult the seller whose cooperation you seek.

   2.   Knowing that you have cash makes me feel comfortable taking your offer. With distressed properties, over-asking multiple offers, and the generally warm-to-hot seller’s market in many areas, it has become increasingly common for sellers to request proof of a buyer’s “cash to close.” (This usually takes the form of bank or other asset account statements, with the sensitive account number information blacked out for security purposes.)

One word: Comfort. Over the last few years, the number of home sale transactions that went into – and fell out of – escrow due to last minute loan problems of pre-approved buyers hit a record high. While this is awful for buyers to go through, it’s even more disruptive for sellers, who are relying on the transaction to close in the time frame the buyer provided to move forward with their own lives. It’s also a worst case scenario for a seller who had 5 offers on the table to choose one and then have it fall out of escrow later on.

And sellers’ agents know this – often, the issues which derail a buyer’s loan can be resolved with money, extra cash down, extra cash at closing, extra cash to put in escrow for post-closing repairs required by the lender or the city. So, proving that you have more cash than you appear to need to close the deal doesn’t necessarily set you up for the seller to ask for more cash – but it might help them feel that you’re the buyer most likely to sidestep mortgage obstacles and seal the deal.



3.   It’s all about the Benjamins – but close-ability is a close second.  Buyers be on notice – all the love letters, cute dog pics and cookies in the world will not make your offer win out over others that are offering significantly higher than yours, financially speaking.

There is always an exception to the rule, and it does sometimes happen that a seller will take a slightly lower offer than the highest for one reason or another. But if you’re trying to create a plan that stacks the decks in your favor in a multiple offer situation, your first priority should be to offer as much as you can, without spending beyond what is affordable for you and beyond the home’s fair market value.

5.   Ask nicely – the old “flies with honey” adage is true. The conventional narrative about buyers and sellers is that they are adversaries. But I’ve been around this block a few times, and I think the average buyer would be absolutely gobsmacked at the number of times sellers are actually ready, willing and able to agree to their requests throughout a transaction. This is especially the case where:

1. the buyers’ requests are reasonable and not nickel-and-dime nitpicks
2. the buyers phrase their requests nicely, and
3. the buyers have been living up to their end of the bargain throughout the course of the transaction.

For more information, or if you are thinking of buying and/or selling in the Los Angeles area, please contact us today at 310.956.9385.

Article taken from Trulia.com