Finding Your Next Home - Buyers
Benefit from our real estate expertise
Searching for your home can be both exciting and frustrating – it also can be full of surprises and disappointments.
While we cannot take the emotion out of purchasing a home, we can help you make the most informed decision possible. To do that, we have developed a program that educates, guides, and provides home buyers with the strategies and tools to find the right home and to build wealth through real estate.
Personal buyer consultation
Buying a home that fits your current needs and wants is important, and so is considering your future needs and wants. We spend time listening and learning about your current situation and preferences, as well as your goals for the future. We also make sure we provide you with enough information about
market conditions so that together we may form an effective home buyer plan.
Developing a plan
Once you have decided to be represented by our real estate team, we will develop an organized house buying plan. As part of this plan, here are just some of our action items:
Throughout the home buying process, we provide you with many options, ideas and strategies that will position you to prevail in a competitive and sometimes complicated real estate market. We will locate and present selected properties to you as well as present authorized purchase offers, and negotiate any
counter offers to your acceptance.
Click here to complete our Home Purchase Questionnaire.
While we cannot take the emotion out of purchasing a home, we can help you make the most informed decision possible. To do that, we have developed a program that educates, guides, and provides home buyers with the strategies and tools to find the right home and to build wealth through real estate.
Personal buyer consultation
Buying a home that fits your current needs and wants is important, and so is considering your future needs and wants. We spend time listening and learning about your current situation and preferences, as well as your goals for the future. We also make sure we provide you with enough information about
market conditions so that together we may form an effective home buyer plan.
Developing a plan
Once you have decided to be represented by our real estate team, we will develop an organized house buying plan. As part of this plan, here are just some of our action items:
- Mail postcards into neighborhoods of interest to find potential sellers
- Preview weekly broker tour open houses to screen new listings
- Send new MLS listings to you that match your specific requirements
- Preview public open houses for new listings that meet your requirements
- Contact For-Sale-by-Owners for listings not posted on the MLS
- Network with other affiliated Realtors to locate homes that will soon be listed for sale.
- Employ targeted Facebook ads to leverage the power of social media to find your next home
Throughout the home buying process, we provide you with many options, ideas and strategies that will position you to prevail in a competitive and sometimes complicated real estate market. We will locate and present selected properties to you as well as present authorized purchase offers, and negotiate any
counter offers to your acceptance.
Click here to complete our Home Purchase Questionnaire.
Contract negotiation expertise
Negotiating real estate purchase offers and contracts is not easy, nor is it an area of strength for every real estate agent. However, contract negotiation and formation are a strength of our real estate consultants.
- We confirm the property’s market value before we begin negotiating and submitting your offer
- We help you understand every clause and provision within the contract you approve
- We evaluate and advise you on any home buying contingencies included in the contract to protect your rights and interests
- We craft detailed purchase agreements to eliminate surprises and costly oversights
How get your offer accepted in a hot seller’s market
In a seller’s market, you may have to compete against other buyers, which raises the stakes and makes it especially important that you move through these steps quickly. When you have found a home you love, here is what you need to do to craft an offer that appeals to sellers.
Use an escalation clause
In a multiple-offer scenario, the last thing you want to do is assume another buyer is paying far above the asking price and submit a higher offer based on this assumption — you might get the property but end up realizing you could have gotten it for less. Consider including an “escalation clause” which states that you are willing to pay a specific dollar amount over the highest competing offer.
Here is an example:
A home is listed for $850,000 and it has three other offers. You submit an offer of $850,000 with an escalation clause that says you will pay $5,000 more than the highest offer, up to a maximum offer price of $860,000. Then, if another buyer comes in at $855,000, you will automatically offer $860,000 to secure the deal, without going over the maximum amount you are comfortable spending.
Accommodate the seller’s timeline
Ask if the seller needs a quick close or an option to rent the home after closing to allow enough time to pack and move. For some sellers (like those buying another home or relocating for work), timeline can be as important as the sales price.
Waive contingencies
Most buyers include contingencies in their offer. In a competitive market, waiving contingencies can make your offer stand out. You can remove the appraisal contingency that is usually included for buyers financing a home purchase as well as the loan contingency only if you are fully pre-approved by your lender. Inspection contingencies are common — and some buyers waive their inspection contingency in hot markets, but this can be risky.
The home sale contingency, where your offer is contingent on selling the home you currently own, is included when you need the equity from a home you are selling to purchase your next home. This can make your offer less appealing to a seller, who wants certainty in their plan to fit their own timeline priorities. It is best to complete the sale of your existing home before making offers for your next home.
Write a personal letter to the seller
Some sellers are sentimental about selling their home and may focus on their desired buyer profile over the highest sales price. When dealing with a seller who has lived in their home for many years with pride of ownership, they might be focused on selling their home to someone who will take good care of it. Write an insightful and sincere letter about why the home is a perfect match and what you love about the house and the community. Let the seller know you are a serious buyer.
Over the past 35 years, we have successfully negotiated over 1000 real estate purchase agreements.
Benefit from our real estate expertise for your next home purchase.
Contact us to win with us!
Pete Sabine & Leslie Whitney
Use an escalation clause
In a multiple-offer scenario, the last thing you want to do is assume another buyer is paying far above the asking price and submit a higher offer based on this assumption — you might get the property but end up realizing you could have gotten it for less. Consider including an “escalation clause” which states that you are willing to pay a specific dollar amount over the highest competing offer.
Here is an example:
A home is listed for $850,000 and it has three other offers. You submit an offer of $850,000 with an escalation clause that says you will pay $5,000 more than the highest offer, up to a maximum offer price of $860,000. Then, if another buyer comes in at $855,000, you will automatically offer $860,000 to secure the deal, without going over the maximum amount you are comfortable spending.
Accommodate the seller’s timeline
Ask if the seller needs a quick close or an option to rent the home after closing to allow enough time to pack and move. For some sellers (like those buying another home or relocating for work), timeline can be as important as the sales price.
Waive contingencies
Most buyers include contingencies in their offer. In a competitive market, waiving contingencies can make your offer stand out. You can remove the appraisal contingency that is usually included for buyers financing a home purchase as well as the loan contingency only if you are fully pre-approved by your lender. Inspection contingencies are common — and some buyers waive their inspection contingency in hot markets, but this can be risky.
The home sale contingency, where your offer is contingent on selling the home you currently own, is included when you need the equity from a home you are selling to purchase your next home. This can make your offer less appealing to a seller, who wants certainty in their plan to fit their own timeline priorities. It is best to complete the sale of your existing home before making offers for your next home.
Write a personal letter to the seller
Some sellers are sentimental about selling their home and may focus on their desired buyer profile over the highest sales price. When dealing with a seller who has lived in their home for many years with pride of ownership, they might be focused on selling their home to someone who will take good care of it. Write an insightful and sincere letter about why the home is a perfect match and what you love about the house and the community. Let the seller know you are a serious buyer.
Over the past 35 years, we have successfully negotiated over 1000 real estate purchase agreements.
Benefit from our real estate expertise for your next home purchase.
Contact us to win with us!
Pete Sabine & Leslie Whitney
