Buyer

October 11, 2022

When house hunting, the excitement of finding "the one" can sometimes cause an excited buyer to put in an offer prematurely. There are many questions that a buyer should ask to properly "vet" a home before an offer is made. If something seems too good to be true, there may be a reason. Here are five questions to ask before putting an offer in on a home you plan on buying.

How Long Has The Property Been On The Market?

If a home has been sitting on the market for a few months, there's probably a reason why. For example, the house may be overpriced, have unseen issues that the seller isn't fixing, or be in an undesirable area. Your agent can help you figure out what's going on when you see a house with a longer days on market count.

Have There Been Other Offers?

Finding out if there have been previous offers is important for a few reasons. If there have been offers, why did they fall apart? Was it an issue with the buyer's financing, or did the home fail an inspection? Asking these questions will reassure you that an offer on a particular house is a smart decision.

You also want to know the kind of competition you're dealing with. For example, there may be active offers competing with your own, which may help you realize you're making the right decision and motivate you more.

What's Going On In The Area?

You should ensure that no significant changes are coming to the neighborhood you've chosen to buy in. You should try to find out if there will be major construction near your home that will increase traffic in the area or cause months of unpleasant noise.

There are also positive changes that can happen around a home, such as adding a school, park, or bike path, which may increase the home's value and motivate you as a buyer.

You should also consider what day-to-day life will look like in your new home. Do plenty of research about the surrounding school systems, crime rates, and commute times to the places you go most often.

Have There Been Price Reductions?

Knowing the history of pricing a home can give you a better idea of how motivated a seller is. It can also help to figure out if a listing started out overpriced. Your real estate agent can also help you by providing a CMA, which estimates the value of a specific property by evaluating similar ones that have recently sold in the same area.

What Matters Most To The Seller?

Every seller wants the highest price, but there are a few other things they may ask for. Do they want a speedy closing, leaseback, or to leave things there that they won't be taking to their new home? Asking these questions will help you, as the buyer, align your goals with the seller and leave everyone satisfied with the way the sale goes. Knowing exactly what a seller wants can help you and your agent structure the most attractive offer possible.

Putting an offer in on a home can be daunting, but working with the Jill Biggs Group team of agents will help ease all the stress that comes with being a homebuyer.