You’ve just fallen in love with a house in the neighborhood you want and, to top it all off, it’s in your price range. It’s time to celebrate, right? Not quite. The way you draw up your offer will determine whether you and the seller agree on a deal and move toward closing the transaction. Here are some major factors to keep in mind. 

Is The Price Right?
You’ll have to decide on an offer amount. Is the home worth the asking price? You might choose to make a full-price offer, or you can offer a lower amount if you think there’s some bargaining room. 

You’ll also want to consider whether we’re in a buyer’s or seller’s market. In hot seller’s markets, bidding wars and offers above asking price are not uncommon. Finally, factor in how willing you will feel if your offer isn’t accepted. There’s always another home, but if you have your heart set on this one, you may not want to haggle over what will amount to a few dollars a month on your mortgage payment. 

Show Them You Can Get the Loan
Certainly, the bottom line plays a huge role in the seller’s decision to accept, counter, reject, or ignore the offer. But you also want the seller to know you’re actually qualified to purchase their home at that price. Even before you start looking at homes, it’s a good idea to secure a letter of prequalification from a lender—or better yet, a pre-approval letter. 

How Earnest Are You?
Earnest money is an amount you put towards the sale in advance of the closing to show you are entering into this transaction in good faith. The earnest money check is applied toward the down payment if the transaction closes. If the transaction does not close, in certain circumstances, the seller keeps the earnest money. In other scenarios, the earnest money is returned to the buyer. (Your San Antonio REALTOR^® can discuss more details about how earnest money works when a transaction does not close.)  

Timing Plays a Role
The time frame for closing the transaction can make or break an offer. Or the closing date may be fine but the date of possession of the property poses a problem. If you have constraints related to selling your existing home, your offer will not be as enticing as someone who does not. The more flexible you are, the more the seller will be inclined to accept your offer. 

Look At Your Options
Most buyers include a provision in the contract to purchase an option to cancel the contract before a specified date. This gives you a chance to have the property inspected, which may influence you to exercise the option to cancel the contract. But inspections are not the only reason you can pull out during the option period. In fact, you can walk away for any reason whatsoever. You want an option period long enough to make good decisions about the home. Keep in mind, though, that longer the option period, the less favorable it is to the seller. 

Weigh the Pros and Cons
You can see there’s much more to an offer than purchase price. Other factors could include items that come with the property or items you’d like repaired by the seller. Your San Antonio REALTOR^® can help you sort through all these variables and devise the best strategy for making an attractive offer. For more information about buying, selling, and leasing real estate in or around San Antonio, I invite you to visit the property section of SABOR.com.