Buying a house is one of the biggest financial decisions you'll ever make. It's essential to do your homework and understand all the steps involved in the process. Once you've found a property you love that fits your budget, it's time to make an offer. 

This blog post will walk you through how to prepare an offer to buy a house. We'll cover topics like reviewing the area, talking to your agent, contingencies, comparables, timeline, and understanding the market. By following these tips, you can enter into the home-buying process with confidence! 

Understand the local market conditions. 

Once you've reached the point of making an offer, you should have an understanding of whether it's a seller's, buyer's, or neutral market. When it's a seller's market, buyers compete for limited inventory and make regular offers above the list price. Conversely, in a buyer's market, buyers have more negotiating power as there is an overabundance of available properties. Finally, neutral markets mean neither buyers nor sellers have more negotiating power. 

Review comparable properties. 

What are the comparable sold properties and comparable live listings? Before deciding on an offer price, you need to know whether the property's listing price is at, above, or below the approximate market value. If you want to make an offer that's significantly below the asking price, you want to justify that offer with comparable sales. The last thing a buyer wants to do is unintentionally insult a seller. Buying and selling homes is emotional, and you don't want a seller to be offended, as it will make the negotiation process more challenging. 

Your real estate agent can help you compare the listing price to similar homes in the area that have recently sold or are currently on the market.

Discuss contingencies with your agent. 

Certain contingencies should be built into an offer to protect buyers in case something goes wrong during the buying process. These include financing, home inspection, and appraisal contingencies which can be tailored depending on your needs as a buyer. Your agent can help you decide which contingencies you should include in the offer and provide guidance on the parameters of each contingency. The Yates Team want to help our buyers get their offers accepted while ensuring they are protected in the event the house has significant deferred maintenance or doesn't appraise for the purchase price. 

Timeline is important. 

When submitting an offer, you need to include a settlement timeline. Discuss this timeline with both your real estate agent and mortgage broker. You want to ensure that your team has enough time to fulfill their roles before the closing date. 

Submit your offer with your agent. 

Once you've finalized your offer with your real estate agent, they will present it to the seller's agent. After submitting the offer, don't expect an immediate response. It typically just takes a day or two to hear from the seller.  Your agent will handle all communication and negotiations with the seller on your behalf. 

The Yates Team has experience helping hundreds of buyers submit offers and successfully purchase their dream homes. Get in touch to find out how we can help you find and buy your next property.