5 Tips to become an astute buyer

Sellers who have had their homes on the market for a long period of time are usually anxious to move on. Such sellers will often choose to let their listings expire and try again later. These sellers are more likely to be willing to negotiate and sell for a lower price. When ready to purchase, opportunistic buyers should be on the lookout for such properties.

Here are some things buyers should consider when choosing such a bargain;

1. Know your market

Before submitting an offer, the buyer should do a full comparative market analysis of the property to determine what its fair market value is. Alternatively, buyers should view as many properties as possible and keep an eye on what properties are selling for (rather than what they are advertised for).

2. Choosing a popular property

When a popular property that has several offers, the seller is highly unlikely to accept a lower than asking offer. Expect to pay above the asking price and don’t expect to get a second chance. Ask the real estate agent if there has been any previous offers on the property and see if the agent will disclose why the offers were not accepted.

3. What is your max price?

Buyers should set their walk-away price before the first offer is submitted as at some point, the property is not worth what the seller wants. Also, don’t be too firm on the first offer. For instance, stating that the first offer is the best and highest offer is not going to get a buyer anywhere when the buyer subsequently counter offers what the seller is coming back with.

4. Making a clean offer with no or little strings attached.

A clean offer is always going to be more attractive than an offer that has many conditions attached. For instance, a subject to sale of another property is never going to be a strong offer, so the buyer needs to compensate for that with your offer.

5. Cash is king

A cash offer is a strong offer, but a cash offer can still fall through. A seller will still look at the overall offer before making a decision, so if your offer is almost as strong as the next offer that is subject to finance you may still lose out.

There are always good deals to be made for the astute buyer. Prepare yourself as much as possible and educate yourself about the local property market that you are about to buy into.

Readers should always seek their own independent advice prior to making any decisions regarding property or finances.