From Dozens of Questions . . . to Just One

After all the market analysis, Comp’s, showing feedback, etc., once a Buyer shows up with an offer, there’s really just one question Sellers (and their Realtors) have to contemplate.

Namely:  ‘Is this offer the best (or close to it) that I can expect to get for this home, in this market?”

If the answer is “yes,” they should work with the Buyer to improve the offer as much as they can.

If the answer is “no,” they should keep waiting.

“Bird in the Hand”

What goes into that answer?

Such factors as cumulative market time; the number of showings (and second showings); competing inventory; and the presence (or absence) of any other, interested Buyers.   

Plus, of course, the Seller’s wherewithal to wait.

And perhaps the most important factor of all:  simply a gut sense of prevailing prices for a given corner of the housing market, at a given point in time.

P.S.:  in a still-tentative housing market, the corollary to “Is this deal the best I can expect to get?” is, “what are the odds that the next offer — if/when it comes — will be lower?”

About the author

Ross Kaplan has 19+ years experience selling real estate all over the Twin Cities. He is also a 12-time consecutive "Super Real Estate Agent," as determined by Mpls. - St. Paul Magazine and Twin Cities Business Magazine. Prior to becoming a Realtor, Ross was an attorney (corporate law), CPA, and entrepreneur. He holds an economics degree from Stanford.

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