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Old 05-18-2007, 05:14 AM
Status: "Made the Retirement Run in under 12 parsecs!!!" (set 1 day ago)
 
Location: Cary, NC
43,060 posts, read 76,592,428 times
Reputation: 45383

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Quote:
Originally Posted by PDXmom View Post
Lowballing is no the only way that makes a buyer look desperate. We received multiple offers on our house in Portland and one offer included a check written to us personally. If we accepted their offer in the small window of time that they gave us then we got to keep this $500 check. I wanted to reject the offer based on the "used car salesman" approach. But our realtor explained it was the buyer's realtor's idea and he was young, green and overly excited. So we didn't hold it against the buyer but we did return the check. Now, if the buyer had only offered to wash my laundry for a week.... that would have impressed me.

Also, find out the customs of presenting an offer in the area. Here in our neighborhood in Portland the buyer usually writes a personal letter to go with the offer. My Durham Re Agent had never heard of that so I opted to forgo the letter. I did not want the seller to think I was a weirdo. However, I bet people might write letters for those ITB houses and Trinty Park houses that go within days of listing. If not, it might give you a leg up. I do think if the house has a sense of long term history then the letter is a nice touch. Then again... maybe I'm just a weirdo.
To a purely money-driven seller who bought a home strictly for resale value, never cared about it on a personal basis, then the letter is a waste of time.

Now if you are buying from a retired couple or widowed person who built the home and put their heart and soul into it for 45 years, and want to tell you all about how they put the Christmas tree in which corner of the sunroom, or buying from their kids who were raised there, or a family that had the homestead for 4 generations, then a letter might help.

It would be a letter of appreciation for letting you visit their home, acknowledging the love they showed for the property, expressing hope that you will be as happy as they have been, anticipating having family time there, etc. A warm letter may be the ticket to buying that desirable property even if someone else is only offering cold cash.
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Old 05-18-2007, 07:09 AM
 
Location: Oxxford Hunt, Cary NC
4,477 posts, read 11,584,720 times
Reputation: 4263
As a seller, I like to know a little about the buyer. I had two offers on my house in Virginia. One from a young couple relocating from CA whose first offer was low (i.e. they wanted a deal). The other offer was from a retired couple who were downsizing. They loved my house because it was a ranch, in a great neighborhood (walking trails, mature trees, etc), and my living room was just *perfect* for the wife's piano. Thankfully they offered me $1K over listing price, and waived the inspection contingency. For once, I got to sell to someone I liked! There were also retirees living in 3/4 of the neighboring houses, so I knew they'd fit right in.

Now, I'm not sure I'd write a letter exactly - but I do think having your realtor convey a little about yourself, how much you like the house, etc., could help in the case of multiple bids (or perhaps a little lower bid than the seller might like to see).
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Old 05-18-2007, 07:37 AM
Status: "Made the Retirement Run in under 12 parsecs!!!" (set 1 day ago)
 
Location: Cary, NC
43,060 posts, read 76,592,428 times
Reputation: 45383
"For once, I got to sell to someone I liked! "

Felt good, didn't it?
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Old 05-18-2007, 08:26 AM
 
Location: Oxxford Hunt, Cary NC
4,477 posts, read 11,584,720 times
Reputation: 4263
Quote:
Originally Posted by MikeJaquish View Post
"For once, I got to sell to someone I liked! "

Felt good, didn't it?
Yes, very. The previous sale was to a truly despicable person who tried to bribe my real estate agent to get me to sell for a lower price. Unfortunately, he was the only interested party I had!

He also lied about being able to barely afford my house (which is why he wanted a cheap price). I found out he lied because his first loan fell through due to him having 'borrowed' someone else's social security number for a few years when he first arrived in this country. He magically came up with $30K to do 20% down with a subprime lender, which is how I found out he lied. After the closing I was looking through the paperwork and saw that his "mortgage company" was something like "Joe's Pool & Spa's."

I swear I am not making this up!

Anyhow, yes.. I much prefer to sell to people I like!
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Old 05-18-2007, 11:40 AM
 
17 posts, read 58,018 times
Reputation: 13
Thank you for all the responses. It's all a bit new and it has truely been a learning experience. I continue to search and am heading down on the first of June for my first of many visits before the big move.
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Old 05-18-2007, 02:50 PM
 
Location: Morehead City, NC
1,681 posts, read 6,008,928 times
Reputation: 1277
Default Letter Writing

Writing a letter to go with your offer can be a very effective tool. But be advised-Anything that is not not part of the actual offer then it can be thrown away by the listing broker and never given to the seller.
I had this happen to me so I called the legal department of the NC Real Estate Commission.They said that if it is not part of the actual offer itself then the listing broker is not obligated to give it to the seller-So your letter can be chucked right out the window.
Bill

Last edited by Bill Hitchcock; 05-18-2007 at 03:29 PM..
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Old 05-18-2007, 08:07 PM
Status: "Made the Retirement Run in under 12 parsecs!!!" (set 1 day ago)
 
Location: Cary, NC
43,060 posts, read 76,592,428 times
Reputation: 45383
Quote:
Originally Posted by Bill Hitchcock View Post
Writing a letter to go with your offer can be a very effective tool. But be advised-Anything that is not not part of the actual offer then it can be thrown away by the listing broker and never given to the seller.
I had this happen to me so I called the legal department of the NC Real Estate Commission.They said that if it is not part of the actual offer itself then the listing broker is not obligated to give it to the seller-So your letter can be chucked right out the window.
Bill
Good Stuff, Bill.
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Old 05-18-2007, 08:26 PM
 
Location: Raleigh, NC
12,475 posts, read 32,148,806 times
Reputation: 9450
Quote:
Originally Posted by PDXmom View Post
Lowballing is no the only way that makes a buyer look desperate. We received multiple offers on our house in Portland and one offer included a check written to us personally. If we accepted their offer in the small window of time that they gave us then we got to keep this $500 check. I wanted to reject the offer based on the "used car salesman" approach. But our realtor explained it was the buyer's realtor's idea and he was young, green and overly excited. So we didn't hold it against the buyer but we did return the check. Now, if the buyer had only offered to wash my laundry for a week.... that would have impressed me.

Also, find out the customs of presenting an offer in the area. Here in our neighborhood in Portland the buyer usually writes a personal letter to go with the offer. My Durham Re Agent had never heard of that so I opted to forgo the letter. I did not want the seller to think I was a weirdo. However, I bet people might write letters for those ITB houses and Trinty Park houses that go within days of listing. If not, it might give you a leg up. I do think if the house has a sense of long term history then the letter is a nice touch. Then again... maybe I'm just a weirdo.
Actually, in areas that homes have 2 or 3 buyers, most of the potential buyers DO write letters explaining why they should be the "chosen one"! I had a seller once send back a reply to my buyers, explaining that although they appreicated their "low offer", they were not able to accept it. The letter went on to explain why they thought they'd get what they asked for the home. My buyers wrote back explaining why they thought the home was priced incorrectly and offered a "contingency".

Sellers later told their agent that they WANTED to take our contingency but just HAD to sell sooner than later. Still, it made us feel like our offer wasn't just rejected.

There is alot to be said for that saying "you catch more flies with honey than vinegar"!!!

Vicki
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Old 05-20-2007, 01:56 PM
 
1,489 posts, read 5,678,723 times
Reputation: 553
I would suggest giving the buyer an explanation for a low offer any time you submit one. They probably have a reason for the price they are asking, and you probably have a reason for the price you are offering. If someone comes to me and offers me $10k low for my house, and provides several comps showing why the low offer, it will have a lot more clout then the offer alone.
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Old 05-21-2007, 10:02 AM
 
460 posts, read 2,417,238 times
Reputation: 184
In Johnston and Wake counties you can find how much your SELLER paid for the home and then using that market analysis figure out what is FAIR.
We saw one home where the person selling wanted to make $90,000 in less than 3 years. I laughed the house needed 2 rooms worth of wallpaper overhaul and the landscaping was in bad shape needing what I figured was thousands of dollars worth of replantings, prunings and general fixing.
To me that meant the SELLER thought he had gold. To me it was gold in the rough and not anywhere near 90% of the asking.
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