About Essex County, NJ

In the Northern New Jersey real estate market, an agent negotiates all the time. You negotiate for your clients (i.e. price, allowances, contingencies, timing, earnest deposit, payment of financing/closing costs, personal property included/excluded, deadlines, etc.), with other agents (e.g. referral fees and co-brokerage fees), as well as with third parties (i.e. attorneys, home inspectors, appraisers, title companies, etc.). Then when you become successful you can even negotiate with your broker (i.e. commission splits, monthly fees, advertising costs, etc.).

In a field rife with competition, it’s important to keep up your credentials, but ultimately, my primary goal in every transaction is to protect my clients’ interests. So in December, I was one of the first batch of New Jersey Realtors who earned one of the top new designations in real estate - Certified Negotiation Expert (CNE). The class was very substantive, and contained an analytical framework for many different types of negotiations, in the context of real estate, as well as life in general.

Competitive Bargaining, Collaborative Negotiating, Psychology of Buying, and Persuasion Principles are among the topics covered in the course.

We are just entering the initial stages of the Spring real estate market season, which analysts are optimistically predicting to be busier than last year due to pent up buyer demand. As a local Realtor with Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage and a Certified Negotiation Expert (CNE), I am going to share some tips for dealing with the inevitable “low-ball” offer that sellers will get on their property.

Picture putting your Maplewood, New Jersey home on the market for $550,000 and you are confident it's well-priced. You are thrilled when you get the call from your realtor a few days later stating she has received an offer and would like to present it to you this evening. You leave work early to get home and meet with your realtor and you simply can’t believe it – the buyer offered $500,000. You're stunned and disappointed.

If your first instinct is to feel insulted or hurl an epithet - don't! You can still end up with an acceptable sales price. According to Jeffrey Stanton, a nationally recognized speaker and Certified Master Practitioner in Neuro-Linguistic Programing, the key is being ready:

Tip #1: Work with an agent who will prepare and educate you.

It is critical for sellers to be prepared for the possibility of an unacceptably low offer. This is the job of the seller's (listing) agent -- managing expectations and emotions -- and too often this particular educational task is overlooked, with uncomfortable, potentially time-wasting results for all.

Most agents wait for an offer and say, 'oh, shucks, now I'm going to have to present this to my seller’. Not only should the agents tell the homeowners to be prepared for a low offer, they need to come to agreement on just what constitutes "low-ball."

Each market is going to be totally different. It may be 5 to 10 percent below list in one market and 30 percent below list in another. That's a unique conversation that has to happen between a seller and their listing agent.

Tip #2: Never take an offer as being offensive or disrespectful.

“Low-ball” offers may have any number of motivations, and sellers shouldn't automatically presume they stem from the buyers’ desire to be insulting.

Let me preface this by saying that I work about 60/40 with both sellers and buyers. So I know firsthand the "pain" of a “low-ball” offer from the seller's point of view. They come across at first like a slap in the face. But if you are a calm, experienced agent, who knows your marketplace, you can make them work. I love to give the example of a house I had on the market this time last year. The buyer and the agent who wrote the offer were not from our market area and didn’t understand the market place. The offer came in 20% below the list price.

Having listed and sold several of the comparable homes in Maplewood myself, I asked the agent to provide the comps she used. She was completely off the mark with her choice of comps. When I showed her the actual comps, she went back to the buyers and we were able to work through a decent compromise. Turns out this buyer didn’t want to be insulting, they were just mis-educated on the market.

Other times, a “low-ball” may be all the buyers can afford. It could be an investor or a buyer looking to steal the property, or a buyer who really likes your property and is just taking a shot at it, never knowing if you're going to say yes or no. Some listings stay on the market for months without any offer. Some sellers would be happy to get even a “low-ball” offer! So don't take a “low-ball“ offer personally, it’s purely a business transaction and your realtor is there to help you keep emotions out of the transaction.

As a buyer's agent, I have stopped discouraging buyers to go in low with their first offer, except when I know the house is newly listed, well priced and it is clear that there will be multiple offers. In those cases, you need to be competitive, but that's for another blog.

Tip #3: Do not ignore an offer, counter regardless how low.

Some negotiators suggest not responding when an offer seems out of line in order to make the point that the offer must be increased considerably. The risk you take, however, is that the buyer may become confused about the sellers motivation and walk away.

The goal is to keep the lines of communication open, so it is important to come back with something, anything. It doesn’t cost anything to make a counteroffer. If the house is listed for $550,000 and the offer is $500,000, the seller may want to counteroffer at $545,000, just to see what the buyer is going to do. You may be surprised by how many buyers come up considerably the second or third go around – you just need to get them there.

Tip #4: Pay attention to the next move, it will be revealing.

In the example above, the next move can be revealing. One of the signs in negotiations is how much of a move the other party makes. In general, the smaller the move, the closer that person is to their goal.

Take the aforementioned counteroffer of $545,000.

· If the buyer responds with $505,000, it can be interpreted as the buyer not having much price flexibility.

· If the buyer responds with $520,000, that's a big move. If the countering continues but the buyer goes up to $522,000, they may be likely nearer their limit or still hoping to effect a stronger reduction from the Seller.

Tip #5: Be willing to have the buyer’s Realtor present the offer in person.

Sellers sometimes prefer to have the offers presented by their listing agent. However, if the buyers’ agent says they are going to present an offer on my listing that's significantly below the asking price, I usually require that the other agent present that offer in person to my clients.

If it's a true “low-ball” offer where the buyer is just fishing for a price and the agent is aware of that, it might speed things along if the agent's presence is required rather than just faxing the offer. The buyers’ agent will likely say, 'let me get back to my buyers’. It's called a problem transfer. We take the problem - the low-ball offer - and transfer it to the buyers’ agent. Often times, that $500,000 offer has turned into a $520,000 offer by that evening without even starting negotiations. This often actually works.

Since taking this course of action, I enter negotiations better equipped and achieve better results for my clients. As a Certified Negotiation Expert (CNE), I have a valuable competitive advantage that helps to differentiate my services in the real estate marketplace.

My prediction for 2012: CNE agents will be the most in-demand Realtors in their local markets.

If you have any real estate questions, please do not hesitate to contact me. I can be reached via email gosselinhomes@gmail.com or via phone at (973) 985-6117. Please also feel free to browse my website for information on Northern New Jersey real estate at www.GosselinHomes.com or join my Facebook Business page www.Facebook.com/GosselinGroup for local market updates and community information on towns, such as Maplewood, South Orange, Millburn, Short Hills, Livingston, West Orange, Springfield and Summit.

This blog post was featured in www.Patch.com in a two part series. Read Part I and Part II here.

Don't Trust Your Home To Just Any Real Estate Company

As you prepare to sell your home, we appreciate the opportunity to assist you in one of life’s most important events. Most real estate companies offer one level of service. We believe you should expect more. Our exclusive Full Service Marketing System represents our ongoing reliability and service, and our commitment is to meet and exceed your expectations. Below are outlined some of the key components of the home selling process.

You’re ready to sell your home!

Your first step is to have your Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage sales associate assist you with practical ideas on how to successfully prepare your house for sale. If you are not already working with a Coldwell Banker Residential sales associate, you can select one by using our Agent/Office Search. Be assured, by choosing a Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage Sales Associate you will find a professionally trained, experienced agent to offer you agency representation options and full service.

In addition, you can read a copy of our Home Selling Checklist for more information about preparing your home for sale.

This is also a good time to gather all your paperwork that you will need to expedite the closing once you have an acceptable offer. Your Sales Associate can provide you with a list of these items. In addition, you may wish to begin the process of selecting a local Real Estate attorney to represent you once you have an accepted offer on your home. If needed, your Sales Associate can provide you with a list of local attorneys that specialize in real estate.

What should I list my home for?

There are many factors that affect the list price of a home: location, condition, amenities, supply and demand, and local and global market conditions. Your Sales Associate will assist you by providing a thorough market analysis of your home so you will be able to come up with a realistic, competitive pricing strategy on your home.

What is the Property Condition Disclosure Form?

Most sellers of single- and multi-family residential homes are required to provide potential buyers with a completed and signed property condition disclosure form. Failure to provide this form will result in a monetary credit to the buyer at closing. Please consult with your Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage Sales Associate for complete details.

Full Service Marketing and Personally Customized Service

At Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage our goal is to not simply sell your house, but help you realize the best price obtainable for your property. To help you achieve this goal we have developed the “Expect More Full Service Home Marketing System.”

During the market analysis presentation your Sales Associate will explain every aspect of the selling process to you. Once you list with Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage, your Sales Associate will begin managing the sale of your home with implementation of our Full Service Home Marketing System (click on Full Service Real Estate link on this Web site for more information [indicate location of this link?]).

The relationship between you and your Sales Associate is the key to the successful sale of your home. Your home and your needs are unique; therefore your Sales Associate won’t use a pre-designed plan to sell your property. Your Sales Associate will listen to your goals, address your concerns, and use his or her knowledge and experience to create a custom plan that will effectively result in a sale.

Your Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage Sales Associate will also present you with our Seller Services Guarantee, which demonstrates that we are committed to performance!

A Buyer is Ready to Present an Offer!

When an offer is presented, your Sales Associate will advise and help you to obtain the best possible price and terms. Understanding the standard forms and the many transactional issues is key to negotiating the best terms to meet your individual needs. Making sure buyers are pre-qualified is of utmost importance in negotiating a successful sale. Your Sales Associate will promote your interests and assist in developing a clear and binding transaction.

Again, because the offer procedure and paperwork varies within the Tri-State area, please consult with your Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage Sales Associate who will review the specific procedures followed in your area.

Typically an offer is initiated by the buyer through their Sales Associate and includes the following information:

• The amount the buyer is willing to pay
• Mortgage amount, if any
• Closing and occupancy dates
• Contingencies, such as mortgage commitment, building inspections and pest inspections to include where appropriate (but not limited to): termite, pest, radon, water potability, well, lead, septic, oil tank.
• Any personal property specifically included or excluded
• If the offer is not acceptable to you, further negotiations may be necessary to reach terms agreeable to both you and the buyer. Because counter-offers are common (any change in the offer can be considered a counter-offer) it is important that you remain in close contact with your Sales Associate during the negotiation process so that proposed changes can be reviewed and responded to quickly.

You have an Acceptable Offer!

Once again, because the Contract writing procedure, down payments required, building inspection contingency dates, etc…varies within the Tri-State region, please consult with your Sales Associate so that they can inform you of the immediate action steps. Timing is critical at this stage!

Between Contract and Closing

Throughout the transaction, you will need to closely monitor the progress of all contingencies to make certain that all deadlines are met. On the day of closing, the buyer will have a “final walkthrough” to make certain that the house is left in “broom clean” condition and has been thoroughly vacated.

What to expect at the Closing

The closing is a formal process where all parties sign all of the necessary paperwork needed to complete the transaction. Title to the property is transferred from you to the buyer. The buyer receives the house-keys and you receive payment for the house! From the amount credited to you, the title representative subtracts the funds to pay off the existing mortgage and other transaction costs. Deeds, loan papers, and other documents are prepared, signed and ultimately filed with local property record office.

After the Closing

Our exclusive Concierge program was developed to assist you with the services you need before, during, and after your move. Please visit the Concierge Services section within this web site for further details.

*PLEASE NOTE: The home selling process varies by state and state region. Ask your Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage Sales Associate about any details specific to your area when selling your home.

Selling Your Home in Nutley New Jersey

Home for Sale By Owner in Cedar Grove Twp, NJ 07009 - Flat Fee MLS Listing $395

146 Sunrise Ter Cedar Grove Twp, NJ 07009 - Realtors welcome, buyer agent commission paid at MLS#2912745

4 Beds 3 Baths

Single Family Home' Dishwasher, Microwave Oven, Range/Oven-Gas, Eat-In Kitchen, Wood Floor, First Level Rooms: 1 Bedroom, Bath Main, Dining Room, Family Room, Kitchen, Living Room, Second Level Rooms: 2 Bedrooms, Bath.

If you are interested in this Home for Sale By Owner in Cedar Grove Twp, NJ 07009- Flat Fee MLS Listing $395, please call 1-888-362-6543, enter the MLS#2912745 . You can make an appointment or ask any questions about the property. Realtors welcome, buyer commission is paid to any realtor. Please see additional listing details at Realtor.com featured by Realmart Realty.

If you have a Home for Sale in Cedar Grove Twp, NJ 07009 and would like save up to 6% commission, we can list your home on the local MLS and Realtor.com for a low flat fee of $395. For more information please read the FAQ on Home for Sale By Owner in Cedar Grove Twp, NJ 07009- Flat Fee MLS Listing. You will get the maximum exposure of the local MLS, in which thousands of local realtors will help you sell your home. You also reserve the right to sell your home by owner and pay no commission at all.

Please contact Realmart Realty for our texting special. All new orders will receive a free sign with Texting Service where buyers can get full listing details on their mobile phones instantly. Offers ends 05/30/2011, call now for more information about Homes for Sale By Owner in Cedar Grove Twp, NJ 07009- Flat Fee MLS Listing $395.

Are you buying a home in Cedar Grove Twp, NJ 07009 We will give you up to 2% of the purchase price of the property at closing if you choose to work with us. This is for all homes that are listed on the MLS. For more information, please read the Buying tips and FAQS.

Jack Yao - Realmart Realty info@realmartrealty.com, 732-727-2285

YES IT'S TRUE! The state of New Jersey allows REBATES for homebuyers. This is CASH in your pocket at the closing table. For more information on the rebate program, please read the New Jersey Law. This is not a government rebate. Please consult a tax professional about the rebate. In New Jersey commissions are negotiable.

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Town Homes in Cambridge Heights for Under 300k

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