Alright. You have found the perfect house/townhouse/condo … you… and eight or ten other Buyers. In today’s market in Vancouver you have probably spent more time scrutinizing a pair of shoes on sale than you have looking over your potential new home. If you’re lucky you will have had time to squeeze in an inspection prior to offer presentation. A ‘loose end’ like financing or inspection is cause for pause from a Seller. Should that Seller risk taking an offer $20K over ask with a financing clause – or should they hedge their bets and accept perhaps a lesser offer knowing it will be a firm deal when everyone walks away from the negotiating table?
A multiple offer situation is stressful for all parties. When handled correctly by skilled Realtors® it can be far less so. If you are a Buyer, your Realtor® will walk you through the steps leading up to offer presentation and tell you what will happen and when it will happen. You will know how many other offers will be presented but you will NEVER know for how much each offer is written. This is when the nail biting starts. How much do you pay? The answer is actually quite simple – not easy – but simple. The answer is you pay exactly how much you are comfortable spending. You notice I did not say to pay how much you can afford, quite a different thing as some people are not willing to ‘max out’ their financial situation. Keep the emotion at bay as much as possible. It is far too easy to get caught up in a ‘bidding war’ – when winning becomes more important than the outcome.
I tell my Buyers when they ask how much should they pay (and they always ask) that they should pay up to the point where if another Buyer gets the property for $1000 over what they have offered the response from my Buyers should be “Good for them.”
The important thing to remember is to be well prepared before you send your Realtor® to the negotiating table. Know what you can afford and get that financing in place!! If you are purchasing a condo or townhouse get all strata documentation, if it is available, before you write. Get your inspection out of the way before you write. Have the property scanned for an oil tank before you write (another subject, another time.) Be super smart and have a bank draft prepared for the deposit before you write.
All of the above will move you to the front of the line as long as your offer is worthy of consideration. Remember, in a multiple offer situation you have one chance to make it happen. Give it your best shot.