I can negotiate that?!
The saying is everything in life is negotiable. In truth some people either don't realize this or just don't have the guts too. If you've haggled at a yard sale, asked the dealer to throw in a few extra months on the warranty for that new or used car, asked the bank for a lower rate in exchange for a shorter term on that loan or your asked your boss for a raise then you have negotiated. If not what are you waiting for? I repeat everything in life is negotiable. If you find yourself up against a firm seller than shop around or wait them out. You will either find a cheaper or better offer or the seller will realize you have the best offer & might just come back around to you.
As a former real estate agent there is a lot as a home buyer or seller that you can negotiate that many people do not realize. While these are not guarantees as you may come up against a firm seller or a firm real estate agent, but you'll never know unless you ask. Plus if one person won't another one might so feel free to shop around. Let's take a look at some of the things that you can negotiate.
1) Commissions: Yes, when the agent sits you down to list your house and says so our fee is 5-7% of the sale price you can negotiate this. A word of caution that negotiating this may result in less money to agents and may make your house the one agents don't really want to sell because of the income they receive. A good agent however will work for the best interest of their clients whether it's taking what's offered, negotiating a higher amount for them or obtaining the money from the other party in the transaction.
2) Sale Price: So you have found the house of your dreams, but the price is well...out of your range. I'm not talking a million dollar house when you have a budget of 1/10th that amount but say you find the house of your dreams and it's a little over. Throw an offer at the seller. Maybe you can go back and forth and find a more suitable price for both of you. I assure you the very worst they can say is no & then you move on, but I encourage you to at least try. Seller's obviously want the most for their home, but you never know a seller's situation & they maybe more motivated than you think.
3) Household Items: I'm not talking the pictures of the homeowners or anything personal but say you walk through the house of your dreams & they have a living room set that screams to you that it should stay in this house. You can ask for it when you put your offer in. Now I'm not guaranteeing they'll say yes, maybe they just bought it and they too like it. Then again you never know their situation maybe they are downsizing and do not have the space in the new house. If you don't ask you will never know what could have been. When we bought our first house the sellers were throwing furniture at us they didn't want to take for no extra money. My husband used to joke with the kids that we paid $180,000 for that chair so don't break it! Now I'm not saying that owners are all like this but if you like the sofa ask for it in the agreement and maybe don't negotiate as low of a sale price to compensate them for it.
4) Closing Costs: Now this one can be tricky because usually the seller will want more to cover your closing but you may still be able to negotiate some. Our closing costs came to about $3,000 when we bought our house. We asked the seller to "pay" these when we made our offer. Essentially the seller took a small loss but we had to bring no money to settlement.
5) Mortgage Rates: Not only should you shop around you should also negotiate these. If your credit is good, if you have a big down payment, if your will to take a shorter term then negotiate those rates. The first offer from a bank is not always the final offer.
6) Repairs or Cosmetic Fixes: Say you tour the house and you really like it but the back door looks like someone kicked it in at one point. You can negotiate with the seller to fix it or lower the price. As a seller you know the living room rug is shot but you really don't want to replace it. You can negotiate the price or offer a credit to move the transaction along.
When negotiating anything always have a reason why you are negotiating it. Do not simply say just because I can. Be prepared for some back and forth, remember each party wants a good deal. Be prepared to hear No and decide what will happen when or if you do. These are just six things you can negotiate as a buyer or seller in a real estate transaction. They are not a guarantee that the other party will be receptive to the process but as Jim Rohn says, "Adopt the attitude that everything is negotiable. A world of opportunity will greet you." I can assure you that you do not want to be the person to wonder if they would've taken $190 instead of $200; or kicking yourself when you see their couch on craigslist because they didn't want to take it when they moved but you never asked for it. You will never know if you don't ask and the worse thing someone can say is no, but just imagine if they say YES!
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