Checklist to review when writing in a multiple offer situation
Contents
Buyer Education
The Money
Inspections
The Offer
Miscellaneous (Coming Soon Revisited, tips on procuring cause)
Download the .pdf multiple offer checklist here.
How to Win
Tuneup - Buyer Education - Educate yourself into credibility
- Teach buyers how to win and tell them it's competitive
- Have the courage to be a truth-teller
- 75% of offers are now in a multiple offer situation – (80%/20% success rate)
- Question - "Are you willing to do what's takes to buy a home in today's market?"
- Upside Potential of Market
- “Doing Nothing” can be expensive
- Market as opportunity
- Interest rates
- Prices
- Listing Scarcity – time on the market
- List/L/S, Time on Market - Show them in MLS
- Have an initial appointment (View Buyer Presentation)
The Money
- Full and unconditional loan approvals
- Proof of Funds Letter
- Large EMD (earnest money deposit)
- Nonrefundable EMD (earnest money deposit)
- Higher down payments
- Appraisal Gap Financing (Get the gap financing clause here)
- Pay seller’s closing costs
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Inspections
- Inspection items under $XX dollars no problem
- Shorter inspection periods and/or Pre-inspection
- Inspection limited to health, safety, environmental and structural items in an excess of $_________
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The Offer
- Write on the first day
- Write over list price, your best offer, immediately
- List price with a $5,000 bonus for immediate acceptance (quick response)
- Be friendly without being overly aggressive or annoying
- Escalation Clauses
- Gap Financing
- Use 3% down conventional rather than FHA
- No concessions
- Give the Sellers time to move - Possession of Seller's Terms
- Accommodation and Convenience
- Flexible Possession
Contract clauses including those about gap financing, seller paid closing cost and others can be found here.
The Human Factor
- Humanize the Buyer
- Buyer Letters – pull on the heartstrings
- Tell the listing agent about the buyers
The Listing Agent
- Call/text ahead and see if there is a special need
- Make it easy for the listing agent
- Your reputation precedes you and it’s about consensus
- Use Dotloop and make a very professional offer
- Send all the Stuff
- Act like you know what you are doing
- Call back fast
Sellers and the Listing Agent
- Net Sheet Presented with each offer
- Use Multiple Offer Worksheet
- Call Lenders on Pre-Approval
- Highest and Best
- Never send them away, get completed backup offers
- If the seller needs to sell, don't take the highest number, take the strongest buyers
Miscellaneous
Coming Soon (Revisited)
- Play it straight with all the offers
- Create Buzz about the property
- Get Extra Buyers
- Use the purchasers to market into the neighborhood
Buyers and Procuring Cause
- Hot markets generate procuring cause problems - Bigger problem now than ever
- Get buyer agency agreement signed
- If your buyer has seen a house…
- Call the listing agent first and ask for a written assurance of cooperation
- Same thing on by owners
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