Selling a home doesn’t have to be a difficult situation. If you have a real estate agent, she’ll handle all the negotiating tactics and act as a buffer between seller and buyer. However, you can successfully negotiate the sale of your own home by knowing a few tips ahead of time. Make sure that you have a strategy. This lets you plan in advance for the scenarios that might crop up. You’ll be ready to handle anything or discuss anything that might arise during the negotiation process. You have to start by knowing what it is that you want out of your home when it comes to the price. By knowing your bottom line for profits, this allows you to keep your mind on your goal rather than getting sidetracked by all the different tactics buyers will sometimes use.
Be prepared to defend your position. They may want an explanation for why you’ve set your price at the amount that it’s at – or to know why you’re not offering certain concessions. You can defend your position by doing your research ahead of time. Know what the market is doing. Understand if it’s a buyers’ or a sellers’ market. Have your home price set so that it fits the market and the neighborhood that you’re living in.
If you’re selling a home for $200,000 in a neighborhood where the highest home value is $150,000, that’s a poor strategy. You need to do your homework so that you’ll know how to correctly value your home. You can do a market analysis, but you can also get the home appraised before the negotiations start. That way, you have proof on hand with what your home is worth and anything that needs to be taken care of first. You might have a fixed price in mind when it comes to selling your home – but don’t be afraid to listen to the other side. By being willing to pay attention, you might end up with an even better deal.
Know ahead of time that it’s rare for both parties in a home sale to get exactly what it is they planned to get. The negotiation process works as a give and take and both sides need to be willing to make concessions. Don’t try to hide the flaws in your home. A buyer knows that every home has flaws. Point yours out and either offer to fix those as part of the deal or take money off the asking price in exchange for him assuming the needed repairs once he’s the homeowner.
The first offer that you get might be a lot less than you’re expecting. This is simply the art of negotiation. Just make a counteroffer. Keep calm and keep your eyes on what it is that you want out of the negotiation and you should be able to get through it easily.