What Happens When an Offer Comes In?

Well for this, let’s assume that you are the seller, and I Jeff Hunt, am your agent. The buyer will also have an agent (not me).

The buyer’s agent has a relationship of trust with your potential buyer and it’s important that I (as your Realtor) recognize and respect that. They have hired the agent to handle all of their dealings in good faith. So regardless of the price that is offered or level of experience the buyer’s agent has, I will work professionally with that agent to create a win-win situation so that we can get your home sold.

When we get the offer, we will review it and accept it, reject it or counter back with a fair price based on current market conditions. I will also send a cover letter or email to the buyer’s agent acknowledging our appreciation for the offer, the hard work the agent has done to bring us the offer, and an explanation of our counter offer with supporting documentation.

And this whole time, you as the seller have to try to remember a few key things:
1. Negotiating is a give and take process.
2. The buyer knows that it is a buyer’s market.
3. Just like you, they want the best deal possible.
4. It’s just a house now so get out of the “my home” mindset.
5. Never take a “low ball” offer personally. It is just an offer, not an attack.

Hopefully the negotiations will end with both you the seller, and the buyer feeling like they got a fair deal. Then we can open escrow and get ready for the inspections – but that will be another topic…