Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
If you really want to buy a house, make a decent offer. Not the listing price necessarily, but a realistic offer. I will not work with lowball buyers that waste everyone's time.
Exactly!
While it's the buyer's "job" to get the best deal, it's also the seller's job to make a good deal. Forget about being upside down or greedy. My agent suggested a price for my house based upon her research. Sure I would have liked it to be higher, but that wasn't realistic. We had a lot of interest and positive feedback, but received only 2 very low offers. Agent suggested a decrease which we did. Not everyone is desperate to sell, in foreclosure, etc....
Exactly!
While it's the buyer's "job" to get the best deal, it's also the seller's job to make a good deal. Forget about being upside down or greedy. My agent suggested a price for my house based upon her research. Sure I would have liked it to be higher, but that wasn't realistic. We had a lot of interest and positive feedback, but received only 2 very low offers. Agent suggested a decrease which we did. Not everyone is desperate to sell, in foreclosure, etc....
I think it depends on the buyer. We are serious about buying right now; but with the market, we are going to go in low with our first bid. Whe knows if what we can get? And the owners might want to sell! To exclude people because they are making lowball offers is ridiculous IMO.
A friend of ours found their dream home (this is awhile ago) They went in $200,000 under asking. The owners were tired of the market; accepted the offer. Granted this doesn't happen all the time, but it does happen.
If you know they are not serious buyers; that is a different story.
I think it depends on the buyer. We are serious about buying right now; but with the market, we are going to go in low with our first bid. Whe knows if what we can get? And the owners might want to sell! To exclude people because they are making lowball offers is ridiculous IMO.
A friend of ours found their dream home (this is awhile ago) They went in $200,000 under asking. The owners were tired of the market; accepted the offer. Granted this doesn't happen all the time, but it does happen.
If you know they are not serious buyers; that is a different story.
Wow, $200,000 below asking? Must have been a million dollar house or they had a ton of equity. I can't imagine losing all that equity..but then everyone has a different reason to sell....it all depends on the right buyer finding the right seller...
I can see where you want to go in low...when we are back in the buying scene, we are going to want to get the best deal for us...Our agent in Sacramento (where we are probably going) knows the market, she will advise us as to the best offer to make, and then we will decide.
We are not in foreclosure, or short sale, nor even near it..but we are motivated and will definitely listen to any decent offer. We can always counter and see if we can make a deal...
In my area, the only available comps for some homes are at least 6-12 months old, and the listing prices are reflecting what the homes would have been worth if they sold last year. But that was then, this is now...........and most sellers here aren't coming to terms with reality yet IMO. I know the feeling well from selling my own home recently and it's tough, but there are only 2 choices: 1) take the best of the offers presented to you, even if it's painful, or 2) keep the house to live in or rent.
At irresistable prices things are still selling. One house that grabbed our attention was only on MLS 2-3 weeks. It was smaller than we wanted and only 1 bath, with very nontraditional siding and windows, but the location was very convenient, it had a huge 2-car garage, was beautifully maintained, had a big lot, and landscaping was outstanding. We were tempted even though it wasn't what we're looking for! We know the difference between a hasty slap-dash 'staging' and years of thoughtful maintenance. This place was a steal at the price. So poof, it's gone, while other houses have been sitting up to 2 years.
I think the definition of "lowball" will be different for each home, each market. If the reality of the market is that nobody's offering more than $50K under the list price for a certain home, then realistically, the home is $50K overpriced, no matter what the comps suggested. As long as the market remains in a downswing, waiting for a better offer will probably not be productive.
I'm seeing a lot of houses I'd be interested in right now if they were at least $30K less. Will they eventually come down to that price? Dunno. I've seen others drop up to $50-75K since last summer. What I do know is I'm not going to offer more than I can comfortably afford. I don't want to end up losing a home due to unforeseen financial circumstances. Many prospective buyers probably feel the same way right now.
So what's a lowball offer? Depends, IMO.
Interesting sidebar, I heard an interview on NPR, I think, about the current used car market. Car dealerships are now using real estate terminology, talking about SUV owners being "upside-down" in their car loans when trying to trade for cars with better gas mileage.
So the SUV owners are getting "lowballed" on their trade-in values (even more than usual....) but also on the open market value if they try to sell the car themselves.
What is your problem? I know how to pull comps and price a house both for a seller and a buyer. I am not talking about an offer a few thousand less, but really just stupid offers that the seller couldn't, wouldn't, and shouldn't take. Of course it is a buyer's market right now and that is good if you are buying, but use some common sense if you really want to buy a house.
I have to disagree with you. I have bought several houses significantly under the listing price, as the owners were "desperate" to sell. I got a nasty lecture from the seller's agent years back . . . and I told her that at least it was an offer - wh/ is more than anyone else was making - no offers except mine after six months on the market! She said I was trying to "steal" property. I told her she was just peeved b/c of the lower commission.
A lowball offer is a place to start negotiations. NO OFFER is a bad offer, IMHO. I have said it b/f and will continue saying it - people who get "insulted or upset" w/ a lowball offer are negotiating w/ emotions and not their intellect. All offers are a starting point. All offers are good offers. Sure is a lot better to get an offer - ANY OFFER - than get nothing.
Sure is a lot better to get an offer - ANY OFFER - than get nothing.
Hear, hear! I totally agree. It's an OFFER... you can always say "no, thanks". But WHY NOT counter? You have already listed at a higher price. Certainly the buyer won't be "insulted" if you now counter a little lower than your list price (the list price obviously didn't stop them from offering, did it?).
We offered $820K on a home listed at $980K. Some would have been insulted. The sellers, however, weren't stupid; they countered at $950. We were 'feeling each other out'... they wanted to know if we were "serious" (i.e., would bring anything more to the table or were just looking for a steal; as it turned out, we were serious), we wanted to know if they were "stupid" (i.e., would insist on asking price which was too high), or desperate (maybe would take a low offer just to be done).
We saw that they were ready to deal; they saw that we weren't just playing with them. We ended up buying the property for $870K and everybody was happy (or happy enough to close the deal, anyway).
They could have just said "no thanks" to our $820 and walked away (insulted or not). We might then have offered more, or might have thought that they were stuck on their $980 price (or too stuck up to deal) and walked ourselves. We could have not even made an offer out of fear that we would insult them. All have the same result: no deal.
So which result do you want: Deal, or no deal?
(Sorry, couldn't resist that one!)
I say, a "lowball" is just an offer, and an offer is definitely better than no offer. SOMEONE is INTERESTED in BUYING your house!!! That's the first, necessary step to a DEAL. Go for it.
All I can say as a serious buyer is this: (and no aspertions on the OP).
Please, please, please, if you're house has been on the market forever and you can't accept any of the offers you receive because you NEED to (pay off your oversized mortgage because you bought at the peak; pay off your credit cards; pay back your HELOC; buy your dream house; live debt free; insert other reason here), just take your house off of the market. Seriously.
Overpriced listings are a waste of my time. Sellers who can't or won't negotiate are a waste of my time (unless they make that clear from the get-go). Sellers who don't really need to sell but are "testing the market" these days, are a waste of my time. If you can't meet the market and you don't have to sell, don't. I'm pretty sure that a lot of serious sellers feel the same way and would like to see their competition drop to only the "real market", not the dreamers.
No offense intended. I don't want to "steal your house". I'd like to pay a fair market price for a decent home. If your pricing strategy includes hopes, dreams and the new car parked outside, I am not your customer, sorry.
Thanks for all of the replies. I have to say that although it was nice to get an offer, I don't feel wrong in countering it with what I thought was really fair. The fixer uppers in my area sold recently for $200,000. My house is not a fixer. It has a new kitchen, bath, beautiful deck off the master bedroom, finished rec room with wood burning stove. Extra parking. I have chased this market down and I know that hurts me and my efforts to sell. But I countered with 205 which I thought was more than fair. I am not trying to pay off credit cards or keep afloat. I just want to move. I am trying not to take anything personally, but it is difficult when you raised 4 children in a home, have wonderful memories and took really good care of a house, and then be told take what you get offered and be glad that somebody made you an offer....any offer. They obviously didn't take the counter, but you know what....while I am disappointed, I really do feel that I did the right thing. The right buyer is still out there that will buy my home and make a great deal in a great neighborhood.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
