What's Going On Out There?

This week came to another interesting end. I have been working on negotiating home purchases for several clients and one couple was fortunate enough to find a great house smack dab in the middle of the community of their choice. They called me about an hour after we had seen the home and I scrambled to put the offer together quickly for them so I could run over that evening an get it signed.

Usually that is a good feeling. Your purchasers decide they are ready to put a reasonable offer on a home. The big caveat is that no matter what the market conditions are, even in the strongest buyer's markets when sellers receive offers quickly, the responses are often the same. And that is--why should they negotiate in the first week? They never anticipated selling so quickly, so they should hold out for more money right?

Unfortunately for my buyers, this seller had the same outlook as most of the other sellers in the same situation. They decided to counter with much higher than what my buyers and I determined the home was worth, based on the comparable sales in the neighborhood. I told my buyers that I thought the best thing they could do was walk away from the deal and maybe the seller would be willing to negotiate at a later time.

Yes it's a great time to buy, and interest rates are excellent too. Interest rates can often be a great reason to take a deal that wasn't a good as you wanted because in the long run you could save tens of thousands of dollars in payments. But, it is my opinion, especially now, do not pay more for a home than what a thorough CMA suggests the value should be. CMA's are for buyers just as much as they are for sellers. also, every offer should have an appraisal contingency so if the house appraises for less than the contract price, you don't have to buy it!

Now is a great time to negotiate on a home! If you are looking to buy, lets talk!

Germantown Maryland Real Estate

Meyer Leibovitch
301-674-5227