If you’re looking to strengthen your offer, these tips will help.

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As a buyer, here are nine of the top 17 tips you need to know to make your offer as strong as possible in this hot market of ours: 

1. Get pre-approved. Your pre-approval should include how much you’re pre-approved for, what type of loan you're using, how much your down payment is, etc.

2. If you’re making your highest and best offer, let the listing agent know as much. Now is not the time to play games. 

3. Write a genuine letter to the seller (and make it personal). This letter should tell them why you and your family like the home. If two offers come in at the same price, but one has a pre-approval letter and personal letter to the seller, the seller will probably pick that one. 

4. Don’t ask for too much from the seller. In most cases, homes are selling for over asking price, so remember to be reasonable. If you ask for a discount, or if you ask for several contingencies while your own house is still on the market, while the seller has 10 other offers to consider, why in the world would they pick yours? 

 Right now the ‘best’ deal means winning the home.

5. Offer a larger earnest money deposit. Most people put down a deposit anywhere from $500 to $1,000, so why not put down $5,000? If the deal falls through, you’ll get this money back anyways, so show the seller that you’re willing to step it up. A $5,000 deposit on a $400,000 home is a lot of money. 

6. Waive the inspection. I don’t like to do this as a buyer’s agent, but from a listing agent’s perspective, an offer without an inspection takes a lot of pressure off their seller. 

7. Waive the appraisal. My team and I sold a property for $110,000 over asking price a few months ago that didn’t come close to appraising what we sold it for, but the buyer covered the difference. The seller liked the fact that the deal wasn’t based on an appraisal. They still got one, but it didn’t matter. If you waive the inspection and appraisal, that means fewer layers of the onion the seller has to peel back, so to speak. 

8. Don’t offer below asking price. I hate to say this because I want you to get the best deal possible, but right now the “best” deal means winning the home. So unless the home is massively overpriced, be prepared to go in strong with your offer. 

9. Make sure your buyer’s agent isn’t being pushy and/or rude to the listing agent. There’s nothing that a listing agent hates more than this, so it’s sure to sink your offer—especially in this market. 

If you have questions about these tips or there’s anything else I can help you with, don’t hesitate to call or email me. I’d love to speak with you. Also, stay tuned for my next video where I round out the key tips to know to make your offer as strong as possible. 

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