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Are you searching for a home and keeping losing out to better bids? It\u2019s possible that your attack plan is misguided, so here are 5 tips of advice on how to work with your agent to land the property you want.<\/p>\n
Find out what the house is really worth<\/strong><\/p>\n Contrary to common belief, the listing price doesn\u2019t matter.<\/p>\n When advising you on how much to offer, your agent should be looking at the fair market value, meaning how much the home is actually worth, not what it\u2019s listed for. To do this, your agent should have a list of comparable sales in the area, based around similarities like square footage, number of bedrooms and bathrooms, and other perks.<\/p>\n Your agent should have a range, not an exact amount, and should also be taking the time of year into account, as well as any other desirability factors, to know if you should be aiming high or low on that scale. It\u2019s very possible that the home is listed above fair market value, so be sure your agent knows the neighbourhood and the city very well. And if it goes well above a fair amount, it\u2019s not the home for you.<\/p>\n Go see it Day 1<\/strong><\/p>\n It\u2019s important to be actively looking for homes and have an active agent. Seeing homes as soon as they\u2019re posted is best practice, for a number of reasons.<\/p>\n Some sellers will hold back offers for seven days, meaning they\u2019re waiting for a lot of potential buyers to get excited. You\u2019ll want to get in there Day 1 to make sure, if you\u2019re interested, you have enough time to due your due diligence before you make an offer. This includes getting a home inspection, having your financing approved, and making amends with any conditions.<\/p>\n Essentially, you want that full week to do anything and everything possible to be ready to put in the best offer after seven days.<\/p>\n Inquire about bully offers<\/strong><\/p>\n Another reason you should be checking out homes early is to determine whether or not the sellers are accepting bully offers.<\/p>\n Even if the sellers have said they\u2019re holding off for a week or so to receive offers, they may be accepting offers early, to ensure they sell they\u2019re property; these are called bully offers. If you see a home and you\u2019re positive you want it, you may want to \u201cbully\u201d your way into landing it, before others have a chance.<\/p>\n Be sure your agent is the one to ask about this\u2014you don\u2019t want to come across as too eager or offensive. Agents know how to go about discovering this information, so let them take care of it.<\/p>\n Agents should be pals<\/strong><\/p>\n Likely your best offence in winning that bidding war is to have a friendly agent who becomes close with the listing agent.<\/p>\n When the offers come in, if the sellers and the listing agent know you and your agent, you stand a better chance of having your offer accepted. If the agents are friends, the listing agent could unknowingly promote you as the buyer.<\/p>\n It\u2019s true in so many cases, including this one: networking is everything, so be sure your agent is working those mad networking skills.<\/p>\n Make sure your agent has an offer night strategy<\/strong><\/p>\n If bully offers aren\u2019t being considered, offer night is the most important night in landing that home of your dreams.<\/p>\n It\u2019s extremely important that your agent has a strategy fleshed out for that night\u2014going into it blind is a big mistake. Your agent should be considering a number of things, including:<\/p>\n