Homebuyer -- Tips for Making An Offer
There are some things to consider when making an offer to buy a house.
Understand that oral offers are not recognized in Tennessee. The seller could say in front of many witnesses, "Yes, I'll sell you the house for $120,000, and I'll be glad to give you a receipt for the $20,000 you're handing me to serve as an earnest money deposit. Let's shake hands on the deal." If the seller backed out, and you hauled the witnesses into court to prove he had accepted your offer, it wouldn't do any good. You couldn't force him to sell. Nothing is legally enforceable in the purchase and sale of real estate, unless it's in writing. (That's according to a law known as the Statute of Frauds.)
Some people think the right process is to start with a low bid, expect the seller to counter-offer with a reduction in the listing price, then you counter with a few thousand more, and you bargain back and forth the way you would in a mid-East peddler's booth. No! Experienced brokers can tell you that too many volleys usually kill the deal. Tempers begin to rise, someone says "It isn't the money, it's the principle of the thing" and that's the end of that.
It's often wise to make your original offer close enough to the asking price to tempt the sellers to close with it immediately and be done with the thing. They won't have to keep the beds made and the dog tied up every day. Maybe it isn't exactly what they hoped for, but still...
Don't base your estimate of proper price on the tax assessment figures. Even in communities where a skilled attempt is made to keep those in line with market value, they can't be as accurate as the operation of supply and demand in the open market -- what other buyers have been paying for similar property in the neighborhood recently. Your agent can furnish records of such "comp" sales.
Don't assume the sellers have built in a cushion because everyone expects a "usual" five or ten percent bid under the listing price. Some owners hate haggling and may list at rock-bottom for a quick sale.
If the house has been on the market for many months at a given price (inquire, you're entitled to an honest answer), then the buying public has voted that it isn't worth what's being asked. Don't offer full price.
On the other hand, don't fool around if you stumble on a bargain. (If you've been house hunting in that neighborhood for a few weeks, you should be able to recognize one.) If a house is "hot" -- unusually attractive, under priced, just listed -- it won't last long. Offer full price. If other buyers are swarming around an open house, your offer may be in competition with others by that evening; consider offering something over full price.
Do ask for the playground, refrigerator, drapes or even the pool table? If they want to keep these items they will say so.