How to Negotiate an Offer

After your home officially hits the market and buyers have seen it, ideally the offers will start rolling in. This is where a real estate agent (Me 😊) is your best advocate and go-to source for advice. If your local market is competitive and favors sellers, buyers will likely offer at or above asking price. You might even get multiple bids. On the other hand, if sales are slow in your area and you don’t get many offers, you may have to be open to negotiating.

When you receive an offer, you have a few options: Accept the offer as it is, make a counteroffer or reject the offer.

A counteroffer is a response to an offer, in which you negotiate on terms and price. Counteroffers should always be made in writing and have a short timeframe (48 hours or less) for the buyer to respond. For example, you can offer a credit for paint and carpet but insist on keeping your original asking price in place, or you might offer to leave behind certain appliances to sweeten the deal.

If you’re lucky enough to get multiple offers, you might be tempted to simply go with the highest one. But look closely at other aspects of the offer too, such as:

Form of payment (cash versus financing)

Type of financing

Down payment amount

Contingencies

Requests for credits or personal property

Proposed closing date

Be mindful that if a buyer is relying on lender financing, the property has to be appraised. Any shortfall between the purchase price and appraised value will have to be made up somewhere, or the deal could fall apart.

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