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Home Seller just isn’t negotiating!

June 28, 2010 By Doug Francis

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Image by bulldog1 via Flickr

One of the hardest parts of buying a home is making an offer. Really, it isn’t easy to come up with the right offer, and I always tell my Northern Virginia real estate clients that their initial offer should be their “ideal scenario” from the start.

  • Offer price, determined after looking at recent sales and condition of the home
  • Closing or Settlement date, when do you really need to be in the home?

No, that isn’t everything to factor into your offer strategy but they are two essential elements because they are key starting points. Either of these can become major stumbling blocks that may stop a home seller from wanting to negotiate with you at all.

Home Seller motivations are important to understand  because sellers will typically have a bottom line number and an ideal time-frame too (an ideal scenario). I look at this information as part of a “pre-negotiation” for both seller and buyer.

Incompatible time-frames can be a real estate deal breaker

Having worked both sides of the fence here, I know it is important to communicate a home seller client’s ideal scenario to a prospective home buyer or REALTOR who has indicated that they are putting together an offer. For a recent seller client, he was very specific and wanted to settle June 23rd which was information that I shared with all interested parties. There were three competing  offers all with different offer amounts but with June 23rd as the settlement date.

One of my buyer clients submitted an aggressive offer recently on a Vienna home and, although that neighborhood has had no sales in the past two months, the seller is holding firm on the price. Unfortunately, the seller’s REALTOR shared no “ideal scenario” information that could get things moving. In fact, that home seller really isn’t negotiating at all which makes me wonder why they are listing the property in the first place? Yes, the offer is still out there and has even been improved over two weeks… yet it remains a mystery.

So, understand your “ideal scenario” before you list your home or make an offer on a home because it is essential to making sure a negotiation is even going to happen.

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Filed Under: Blog, Home Buyer Tips, Home Seller Tips Tagged With: home buyer, Home Seller Tips, real estate, Vienna Virginia

About Doug Francis

A Realtor specializing in unique and new homes around Vienna, Virginia, Doug started writing a first-hand blog about his everyday real estate experiences a decade ago. In depth, helpful and fun has always been the objective. Outside real estate, he "starred" in a tech commercial for Verisign's "Where the World Clicks" campaign, and was quoted in Money Magazine's Best Places to Live article on Vienna. He's a Boston University graduate who feels morning coffee is non-negotiable.

Being able to guide my clients through many real estate sales, either moving out, moving in, or just across town, has been a rewarding experience that helps when discussing a plan with a future client.

Being able to help them focus and understand our proven sales plan always eases their anxiety of this looming personal task. And, putting it into bite-sized steps always helps them get where they really want to be.

My background… I’ve been an active licensed agent in Virginia for 25 years, work at TTR Sotheby’s International Realty in McLean, and sell homes in all price ranges. I donate to the town tree replacement fund, participate in a neighborhood citizens association, and try my best to stay in shape.

Questions? Email doug@dougfrancis.com or call me at (703) 304-6827 to discuss your plans. Cheers!

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About Doug Francis

I am a Realtor with TTR Sotheby's International Realty® just outside Washington D.C. in Northern Virginia. I have been a full-time Realtor licensed in Virginia since 1991, and cover a big territory specializing in the Vienna real estate market and custom homes for sale.

I have unique knowledge of digital real estate marketing ~ and my marketing starts here. My elite clientele has been attracted to my results-oriented strategy for years, and I am accepting new clients now.

Thanks for reading... and feel free to contact me at 703-304-6827 or send me an email at doug@dougfrancis.com anytime!

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TTR Sotheby's International Realty
6723 Whittier Avenue McLean, VA 22101

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