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.
has anyone ever written a letter to the seller? did it work? i am thinking about writing a letter to the seller of an overpriced property who won't accept my price (40k below asking of $360,000). (this would be my 2nd offer). home has been on the market for 4 months.
of course if realtors were not involved, the seller could net more and i could get my house. but i won't go there!
I didn't write one, but I received one. Unfortunately, the offer was so ridiculously low, it meant nothing to me. I think your offer is reasonable, and the letter may help. YMMV Good luck!
I also received one. And I wrote one back with my counter. It never hurts. But apparently didn't help either of us, as I just instructed my agent not to respond to his last offer. My house wasn't for sale and he approached me. Then low-balled. I countered. Didn't get offended. Wrote him a letter as to why my price was what it was. He came back with "But the market is declining and I'm offering FMV based on REO's and distressed comps." WTH? LOL! I'm not distressed, the house isn't for sale, and if you want my house that isn't for sale then you're going to have pay OVER what you THINK fair market value is and then we'll go from there.
same thing here I got a letter and it really didn't change things. your seller obviously wants his price. 40 grand is huge, if you want the house you need to up your price. why should the seller take a 40 grand loss becuase you are a nice guy and like the house? 4 months on the market is not that long in this economy. a sale without the realtors can end up costing a lot in mistakes, and should not be undertaken unless you have lots of experience.
has anyone ever written a letter to the seller? did it work? i am thinking about writing a letter to the seller of an overpriced property who won't accept my price (40k below asking of $360,000). (this would be my 2nd offer). home has been on the market for 4 months.
of course if realtors were not involved, the seller could net more and i could get my house. but i won't go there!
DOOOOOOON'T DO IT!!!!!! DO NOT NOT NOT NOT NOT
I did it twice and am kicking myself in the butt for doing it! I saw it done on tv and wrote a really sweet letter thinking it would help, talking about how this is going to my our first home after my fiance and I get married and how we look forward to starting our lives together there.
Nope. My realtor told me the first lady was REALLY offended (why, I have no idea) and the second was p*ssed too, turns out she was a distant relative of my fiance's ex. I feel stupid and wish I had never done it. I will never do it again.
has anyone ever written a letter to the seller? did it work? i am thinking about writing a letter to the seller of an overpriced property who won't accept my price (40k below asking of $360,000). (this would be my 2nd offer). home has been on the market for 4 months.
of course if realtors were not involved, the seller could net more and i could get my house. but i won't go there!
A home is ultimately worth what someone is willing to pay. Perhaps there's another buyer out there that is willing to pay that price. If you aren't then go find another property.
What do you hope to accomplish with said letter? Does it put more money in the sellers pocket?
As far as your comment on the agents, the seller felt more comfortable having professional representation in such a complex and expensive transaction. Don't blame the Realtor if you cannot or will not pay the asking price.
has anyone ever written a letter to the seller? did it work? i am thinking about writing a letter to the seller of an overpriced property who won't accept my price (40k below asking of $360,000). (this would be my 2nd offer). home has been on the market for 4 months.
of course if realtors were not involved, the seller could net more and i could get my house. but i won't go there!
Don't do it...I can't stress it enough. You are a buyer and there are many many more homes out there. I went to gauge the market about 2 months ago and went to a nice looking victorian selling for 499,000. The seller was there by herself because her agent was busy. I left than had my broker call her agent to offer 400,000. I was curious as to what her counter would be, and yep I knew in this market there would be. She countered with 450,000 right off the bat. I said no thanks and didn't return fire. The property is now lower than that and I have received two more calls but I'm not interested. Many houses out there. Never beg, not in this market. Trust me when you finally find your home you'll be glad you didn't write that letter.
Dear Seller,
We are a happy family who love your house. We promise to take good care of it after we buy it and be good homeowners after we buy it. We work hard and are good people. We do good things every day therefore we think you should sell the house to us for $40,000.00 less than you are asking. We are wonderful people we love our children so we think you would be happy to give up $40,000.00 of equity that you have worked so hard for. Come on, you have lived in the house for some time. Now it's our turn - we are the good people and thus we should beable to buy your house for the price we think is reasonable. Afterall, when it comes to the value of the house you don't know nothing. But we do and we are good people.
Thank you for your consideration,
Mr. & Mrs. Good People
P.S. Of course we will let you know what repairs we want you to make after the house is inspected - and you must do them. We are good enough to expect everything in perfect condition. The closing will need to be when is best for us - after all we are good but busy! BTW you will be paying our closing costs. Thanks for understanding.
The seller has an agent. This means that they prefer to be professionally represented in a business transaction.
A heartfelt letter in a business transaction is inappropriate and most likely, counterproductive to your goals. Offer what you can afford and hope for the best. If they counter with what you cannot afford, keep looking.
Forget the personal or emotional pleas. Trust me, they're not listing their house looking for new friends.
Business is business. Keep it that way.
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.
