Right now, we’re dealing with something I haven’t seen in my 32 years in the business. Quality buyers with quality agents are encountering 10, 15, and even 20 other competing bids on any properly priced, good-condition home that hits the market. Here are 10 different ways you can help your buyer clients compete in these kinds of conditions:
1. Get real. Now is the time to have thorough buyer consultations up front. Don’t get swept up into showing properties before you’ve had the chance to sit down and set firm, realistic expectations for your buyers. Go over sales prices, the list-to-sale price ratio, days on market, emerging trends—all of it. You have a responsibility to inform your buyers of the challenges that lie ahead and explain to them what it will take to craft a winning offer.
2. You want to be first. That means being the first one to look at the property and the first to make an offer on it. This leads us to the next point…
3. Everything you do has to be faster. Don’t let your buyers sleep on it in this market. If your clients think they can so much as talk it over during dinner later that evening, they’ll be sorely mistaken. Right now, hours matter. Whether it’s the initial offer, a counteroffer, or any inspections, everything must be faster than the invisible horde of buyers you’re competing against.
4. You need to have fewer contingencies. At the very least, you’ll have to shorten your contingency periods. Every contingency that you include in the contract will put it at greater risk of getting kicked out.
5. You have to put down more earnest money. Some buyers are making their earnest money non-refundable, and others are even opting to compensate the seller for each day that their property is off of the market.
6. Understand the seller’s priorities. As an agent, you’re expected to ask a lot of timely, intelligent questions. Use that skill to scope out the seller’s true priorities, passions, and plans for the transaction. Find their hot buttons, then structure the offer to match their highest needs.
7. Make two offers at the same time. Peculiar times call for peculiar measures, right? Of course, if you submit two offers at the same time, you have to protect yourself. Make sure it’s clearly stated that if one is accepted, then the other immediately becomes null and void. Presenting the same basic net from two different perspectives could increase your chances of having an offer that piques the seller’s interest.
8. Consider using the escalator clause. Now, I’m not the biggest fan of this approach because I’ve worked with a lot of sellers who were turned off by it. That said, there are just as many sellers out there who think it’s the greatest thing since sliced bread.
9. Have your buyer write a letter to the seller. This can go a long way toward humanizing the offer. Sometimes, when a seller has plenty of offers to sort through, they end up going with the buyer they like the most.
10. Use diplomacy. Again, selling a home is just as emotional as buying one. Oftentimes, the buyer’s agent that the seller and their listing agent like the most ends up winning out. Be as cordial, communicative, and charismatic as possible.
So there you have it—10 different tips for helping your buyers win out against all this competition. As always, reach out if you have any questions or comments or about this or another real estate topic. I’d be happy to connect with you.
