So you're ready to make an offer to purchase a home in Calgary? Read below on our best tips and tricks to make your offer the strongest possible offer below! 

You’ve seen 1, 2, 3, or maybe hundreds of fronts doors in your search for your new home! Finally you've found the perfect home that checks all the boxes off on all of your must-haves. Now it is time to make a home offer to secure your the home, here are some tips by the Real Estate Partners team with RE/MAX FIRST to have a smooth transaction with the seller and to ensure that you are able to get your new home with a price and deal that is painless for both you and the seller. 

Writing offer in real estate calgary

The Basics Of Writing An Offer On A Home In Calgary

Once you've put an offer out to the seller, generally speaking your seller would have a few possible reactions on the offer you have submitted: 

  • Acceptance – The seller has reviewed your offer and they're ready to sell their home based on the terms you laid out (price, possession, goods included, conditions, etc. 

  • Counter Offer - The seller has decided that your offer is within reason and they're countering your offer with different terms which could include various things including (price possession, goods included, conditions, etc).

  • Decline – This would happen if the seller believes that the offer is not something they can consider, this reaction is typically seen when an offer is considered offensive or unreasonable. If you have a home listed for $500,000 and the comparable homes have sold for similar prices, but you put an offer in at $400,000 - The seller may not take you serious and may simply decline your offer (or future offers). 

Home Offer Agreement: What does it entail?

  • The sale price that you and the seller have agreed upon. This will include the total amount to pay for the property.

  • The amount of deposit that you will put down. Your deposit is the amount of cash you have in hand that you're willing to put down to secure your position and interest in a home. This is an important detail that can sometimes be overseen, a low deposit on an expensive home could lead sellers to believe that your intentions aren't as serious as they should be. 
  • Any conditions agreed upon. This may include your mortgage financing being approved or any inspections of the property, it can also includes terms including condominium document reviews. 

  • Any other conditions included in the sale of the property. The agreement will also include the other items included on the sale of the home - Appliances, carpets, and other unattached goods.

  • The agreed closing date. This is usually 30-60 days from the offer date but can be a year or longer depending on the buyer and sellers situations.

  • An expiration date for the offer. Some offers may expire 24-48 hours depending on the agreement.

  • The agreement can also include visitations to the home, prior to closing. This is something that buyers will often request if they have intentions of obtaining quotes for work to be done or need measurements for furniture, and other items that they may be trying to plan or map out when they take possession. 
  • Which brokerage will secure your deposit is also noted, there are some instances where this is an important detail. 

How To Select Your Starting Price

Your Real Estate Partners, real estate agent will be very helpful in assisting you in various steps to purchasing your home. This will include the starting price. Your REALTOR® will be able to give you the perfect advice about the starting price of the home. They will take into consideration the following factors and will advise you further on the best route and plan of action. 

  1. Your budget

  2. Comparable price within the whole area

  3. Seller’s situation

  4. Current market rates

  5. Condition of the home

Your Real Estate agent will let you know what to expect and will assist you in setting the best number that will help you have the best opportunity to engage in a negotiation with the seller. We are going to make sure that the amount is something that you’ll be comfortable with, however, this part of the deal takes finesse, experience, and skill but can really hinge on you (the buyers) feelings and emotions towards a property. Take two examples that would have vastly different approaches: 

Buyer 1 a local Calgary real estate investor decides that they're in the market for a flip that needs substantial work, in an emerging neighborhood, they see a home that has been on the market sitting idle for 100+ days, knowing that it's over priced, but not sure on the sellers motivation to sell, they might take a more aggressive approach / offer. 

Buyer 2 a young couple looking for their 'forever' home that they intend to grow their family in, they've been waiting for the right home for them, and a home hits the market that they absolutely love, the price is pretty on point, and the home is popular. Their approach would be much different, with possible multiple offer scenarios, they're more likely to get the home coming in with a good offer. One thing to consider, a home listed, doesn't mean that it has room to negotiate, often buyers believe that homes are listed to drop a little bit, however some homes are listed below market value and can often drive up the price by obtaining multiple interested buyers who fall in love with it. 

Negotiating the Price

It is a very uncomfortable and uneasy thought to haggle over the best price with the seller. We understand that the negotiations can be an emotional process, and you're often in a situation where you're dealing with two parties that have emotional of financial motivations / attachments that can effect the negotiations. 

Your Real Estate Partners Team Calgary REALTOR® will help you as much as they can but there are a few things buyers must remember. 

Keep emotions intact.

These emotions goes for both you as a buyer and the seller. As a buyer, falling in love with a home is easy, you begin to think of the future: restoring certain areas, changing the cabinets, the floor plans and possible renovations or decorations for a perfect future in this new home. As a seller, they will feel the attachment and pride they've had in living and owning the home. As a buyer, it's best to still be open to compromise even if you have already fallen in love with the home. It will be best to reflect on the things that will affect you in the future, resale value, future work, etc. One of the most valuable questions to think about when negotiating is: Are you ready to agree to a term that may not work for you, and are you ready to lose the home in the event that you can't come to an agreement with the sellers? If you answer yes to both of those questions, you may want to discuss with your agent the best plan of action in how you'll approach the negotiations with the seller. 

real estate contract

Bottom line. 

The process of buying a home is an exceptional experience that should be filled with a lot of joy and promise. Reaching out or seeking help from your REALTOR® will be the best way to come up with the perfect offer. Making the transaction smoother and painless will ensure that you can have your perfect home for a price that will work for you and your family. Our team is dedicated to our craft in negotiations, we've invested thoroughly into professional training to ensure our team has the best arsenal of tools when negotiating in behalf of our clients.

 

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Posted by Cody Tritter on
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