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.
OK, I submitted an offer for a house in Florida that appeared to be undervalued. Apparently, others thought the same and there are now multiple offers on the house.
The listing agent has decided that they want all buyers to make a best and final offer. The sellers will pick the highest one and that's that. No further bidding.
I'm annoyed. Without knowing how much others are willing to pay, I might lose the place. If I offer a pie I the sky amount, I'll get the house but will overpay compared.
Wondering what is the best way to proceed from here.
Make your offer as clean as possible, including removing any contingencies that you are comfortable removing. Include a pre-approval letter from a reputable lender. The pre-approvals from some letters aren't worth much more than the paper they are written on. In the finance area, bump up the interest rate to 5% due to interest rate volatility lately. Reach out to the agent and ask if they have a preference as to close date--soon as possible or time to move out/settle into next place? Include an escalation clause in the contract, which increases your bid incrementally up to a certain amount should you be overbid. What Is an Escalation Clause and When Should You Use One? | Realtor.com®
Realize that offering a home for under market value is a tactic specifically aimed at getting people to bid the price up. It is highly common to do exactly as that agent is doing. I had clients just this past weekend that were in a similar situation and our clean offer plus bidding a bit above ask got them the condo vs. 6 other bids.
I remember the days. Listed just above the comps and got 15 offers in two days.
We went out to all with a multiple offer counter. And I also told the agents where the hight offer was in vague terms. I believe half responded and we simply picked the best with good terms.
Wondering what is the best way to proceed from here.
I always tell my clients to offer a number that allows them to sleep at night and not second guess themselves. If you offer a number, lose the bid, see the number when it closes and think "I would have paid that much!", Then you offered TOOOOO low.
You need to offer a number that makes you say, "Ha, I never would have paid that for the house!"
Otherwise, you can second guess yourself all you want. Appraisal will catch if you offered too high. If it doesn't, you also have to know you looked at many houses and you felt this was the best of them all, so you were willing to pay a premium to stop looking for the unicorn at a lower price.
They purposely offered the home for less knowing they would get multiple offers. Offer what you feel comfortable paying and not a penny more. If they accept it great, if not then it wasn't the house for you! As stated about, if you're getting a loan it needs to appraise anyway.
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.
