Milford Real Estate Podcast with Josh Lioce

In the hot Milford seller’s market, how do you make your home offer stand out from the rest? Here are four steps I suggest you take.

If you receive a lowball offer on your home, don’t fret. There are five steps you can take that will turn that offer into an advantage. Buying a Milford home? Get a full Home Search Selling your Milford home? Get a free Home Value Report If you’re a home seller, what should you do if you receive a lowball offer? There are five important steps to follow if you want to turn it into an advantage: Don’t get insulted, and don’t take it personally. This is just an offer on paper. You don’t know if that buyer has been coached to write a lowball offer or if they’re coming from an area or part of the country where lowball offers are common. Take a deep breath and be excited that you have an offer to start negotiating with.Respond gracefully. Thank the buyer and the agent for their offer. Thank them for taking the time to put it forth and tell them that you hope that it comes together and you can both come to mutually agreeable terms. This will demonstrate that you’re happy that your offer is on the table and you’re happy to work with them. A lowball offer is just an offer on paper—don’t take it personally. Write a strategic counteroffer. Make sure you and your agent sit down and discuss how to respond to this. The offer, no matter where it is, should not affect how you negotiate your price. You and your agent should have a strategic plan to go back and give a counteroffer, the terms and conditions you’re willing to accept, and a reason to give to the buyer explaining why it’s not close to their number. A good agent will have this ready to go before you even ask.Expect a counteroffer to your counteroffer. The buyer isn’t going to accept your counteroffer right out of the gate. Once they come back with their counteroffer, you’ll want to present your bottom line if they don’t meet your number. Be ready for your next move to be your best and final approach.Hold firm to your bottom line requirements. When you present your best and final offer, do not jump at another counteroffer if they go that direction. If that happens, thank them for their effort and their attempt and tell them you’re going to seek other offers. Hopefully, their response to your next bottom line is acceptance of your terms. If you have any more questions or have a topic in mind you’d like to see me discuss, please don’t hesitate to email me or give me a call. I look forward to hearing from you!

If you receive a lowball offer on your home, don’t fret. There are five steps you can take that will turn that offer into an advantage.

“Only sell your home during the spring,” and, “Hold off until the market gets busier,” are just two examples of bad advice sellers usually get. Buying a Milford home? Get a full Home Search Selling your Milford home? Get a free Home Value Report Here are four of the worst pieces of advice that sellers sometimes get and actually believe in regard to selling their home: “Only sell your home in the springtime.” While it’s true that spring is the busiest time to sell a home, it’s also the most competitive. You have to sell your home when you’re ready, and you have to listen to your real estate agent for advice on when the best time is to sell in your community. Real estate is microlocal, so you have to pay attention to the trends happening in your area. If you want to stand out, you might want to avoid selling during the busiest season. Remember—any time is a good time to sell just as long as you’re motivated, priced right, and ready to go to market.“If the market’s slow, hold off until things get busier.” If you’re selling and buying and you wait until things are busier or when prices go up, your own purchase price will go up too. Again, only sell your home when you’re ready. Don’t wait for things to get busier or slower; take advantage of the marketplace as it is. If it’s not that busy, you’ll have an easier time finding what you want and you won’t face as much competition. Real estate is an emotional sale. “Don’t stage or fix anything; let the buyers use their imaginations.” Most consumers don’t have an imagination. Real estate is an emotional business. When they walk into a home, consumers are either going to fall in love with a home or hate it. They’re going to know within seconds or minutes if it’s the home for them. Confer with your agent and prepare a plan to do all the right things that make the consumer fall in love with your home.“Professional photography is not important.” On the contrary, photography is one of the most important things that your agent is going to do for your listing when it comes onto the market. People actually click past listings or decide to not even drive by them based on pictures they see online. Make sure you invest in professional photography and that your home is ready for it. Use that photography to capitalize on the ability to market your property online to as many people as possible. If you have any questions about this topic, don’t forget to give me a call or shoot me an email. I’d be happy to help in any way I can.

“Only sell your home during the spring,” and, “Hold off until the market gets busier,” are just two examples of bad advice sellers usually get.

Whether you are or buying or selling a home, an appraisal is an important part of the transaction for you. So what happens if the appraisal comes in low? There are basically three things that can happen: You can challenge the appraisal. Reach out to the lender and tell them that you think it's inaccurate or that they've missed something important. If the lender allows a challenge, you can give them some data or information that shows that the home’s value is higher than what they've deemed it to be.Negotiation. If the difference between the asking price and the appraisal is $10,000, for example, the buyer and seller can negotiate that difference. There will typically be a more aggressive negotiation from the seller than the buyer. If the seller agrees to come down $7,000, the buyer will need to come up with an additional $3,000 to make up the difference. There are plenty of options for this. The seller could come down the full $10,000 or the buyer could come up and cover the full $10,000 in cash. It depends on the motivations of the buyer and seller and the market conditions, among other things.The deal dies. You basically just cancel the deal if the buyer and seller can't come to terms in the negotiation.“ The buyer and seller can negotiate the difference between the appraisal and the sale price. ” Hopefully this situation doesn't happen to you as a buyer or seller, but I hope this topic was helpful for you. If you have a low appraisal, always consult your real estate advisor for help to work through it the best way possible.  If you have any questions for me about appraisals or you're thinking about buying or selling a home in Milford, give me a call or send me an email. I'd love to hear from you.

Whether you are or buying or selling a home, an appraisal is an important part of the transaction for you. So what happens if the appraisal comes in low?