Home Buying Tip: How to Properly Submit an Offer on a Home

When it comes to making an offer on real estate at the Lake of the Ozarks, determining an offer can be a complicated task. After all, you as the buyer want to receive a great price on your purchase, just as the seller wants a great return on their investment. Many people aren't making real estate transactions on a day to day basis, so it can be complicated to "find the sweet spot" when making an acceptable offer on home. In this week's blog, the best real estate team at the Lake of the Ozarks is here to offer some professional insights to help you leverage a great offer. Read on to learn more!

How Much Should You Offer?

When making the initial offer to buy the home, there are multiple factors you have to consider to ensure you don't start off on a bad foot, either overpaying for a home or upsetting the owners with too low of an offer. Here are a few things to consider when deciding the initial offer price:

  • How long has the home been on the market?
  • Are there other buyers interested in the home?
  • Is the home in good condition?
  • Are there any obvious repairs that need to be made?

Looking at the big picture will help you determine how much to offer, as there are a lot of different factors that can influence what offer the sellers will accept. If the home has been on the market for several months without generating very much activity, for example, the seller may be more likely to accept less than the asking price.

The Negotiation Process

When you find the home you want to buy, your first step is to submit an offer. Among other things, your offer should include:

  • Suggested sale price
  • Any furniture or miscellaneous items you want to be included in the sale
  • Suggested closing date
  • Any repairs that must be made before the closing date
  • How much time the sellers have to respond to your offer

Afterwards, the sellers will review your offer and choose whether to accept, deny, or counter. If they counter, they may revise any aspect of your offer, such as the sale price or the other items to be included in the sale. You will then have the same opportunity to accept, deny, or counter. Eventually, you will arrive at a solution that everyone is comfortable with and both parties will sign the agreed-upon contract.

A Few Things To be Mindful of

Your Lake of the Ozarks real estate agent will be able to help you strategize the best offer, but here are a few general guidelines to keep in mind:

Be cautious about low-balling 

Of course, you want to save as much money as you can on your home purchase, but if you submit an offer that's much lower than the asking price, you risk insulting the sellers. 

Don't offer more than you can afford

Submitting a generous offer is a great way to ensure that it will be accepted, but make sure you don't offer more than you have been preapproved for.

Be friendly

 In some cases, you may have the opportunity to meet the sellers. If your paths do cross, you'll want to do everything you can to be friendly and likable. Your transaction is not just financial; sellers typically have a lot of emotional attachment to their homes, and it can be hard to see them go. If you demonstrate your love for the house and your excitement to start your new life there, the sellers will likely feel better about passing the home on to you and will probably be more willing to accept your offer.

With all this being said, one of the best ways to ensure that you have a great homebuying experience is to work with an experienced real estate agent at the Lake of the Ozarks. Your agent will have the expertise, negotiation skills, and market knowledge readily available to help guide you through every aspect of the home buying process. So, if you're interested in buying a home at the Lake of the Ozarks, work with a local expert you can count on to help you navigate the market, call the Fran Campbell Team!

Contact the Fran Campbell Team to get your home SOLD!

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