I heard a story recently about a family who fell victim to poor planning while they were looking to buy a piece of Boise Idaho real estate. The family had placed their home in the Waterloo Ontario real estate listings, as they were moving from that area because of a job offer here in the city.
Both parents had been looking at homes on weekends for about a month, and had made a shortlist of two homes that they felt would be perfect once they arrived. The plan was to stay in a nice motel while the final pieces of the puzzle fell in place (they figured it would not be too much different than staying in Merton Street condos back in Ontario, as long as the rooms were spacious).
They made a choice between the two homes and put in an offer. Within the week, they were turned down. Not only did they lose the chance at what they had decided was the perfect home, they also missed out on their second choice, which sold while they were offering on the first one. Frustrated, the family almost went back up north to look at new homes in Georgetown Ontario, but decided the job offer was too good to pass up. They stuck around and eventually found a house they could call home.
The problem for this family was that they did not know how to put together a winning offer for that first, perfect home. It's a fairly common error, one that occurs in real estate all over the world, whether we are talking Etobicoke homes for sale or those here in Boise. Let's take a look at some things to keep in mind when you are making an offer on a home.
First, you need to get pre-approved for a mortgage. If you have the financing in place, it makes it a lot harder for a seller to turn you down. Boise today is in a buyer's market, which means lots of people are trying to sell. Many of them need to offload quickly, and don't want to wait around for someone looking to secure financing.
Speaking of the buyer's market, it can be very helpful to know just how long a certain house has been on the market for. As a general rule, the longer it's been for sale, the more eager the owners are to sell. You can get a good deal from desperate buyers. Also, see if the asking price has been reduced; that's generally an indication of a tough sell as well.
When you make the offer, set everything out as plainly as you can. You would not believe how sound reasoning can change the minds of many people, and this applies to Caledon real estate negotiations and those in Boise. If you are offering under the asking price due to something you know about the house of the market, put that down on paper. If it makes sense, it might sway the thinking of the seller.
Don't end up losing the bid for your dream home. Put some planning and thought into your offer before you make it!
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