Attention Knoxville Buyers: What You Must Know About Today’s Sellers

Knoxville buyers, are you prepared to deal with today’s sellers?

The Knoxville real estate market is now a strong seller’s market. The market favors sellers, so sellers have the power to call the shots.

As a buyer, it’s important that you understand the current market conditions, so that you can adjust your actions accordingly. In this post, we’ll cover what Knoxville buyers absolutely must know about today’s sellers.

Sellers Do Get To Call The Shots

When you’re buying a Knoxville home in a seller’s market, you need to be ready for the seller to be in the driver’s seat. With the low inventory, buyers face more competition, thus driving up home prices. Sellers have more power, so as a buyer you need to be willing to play ball with them.

Contrary to what you may have done a few years ago, you can no longer get away with making a low ball offer. If you think a home is overpriced, that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t make an offer. Instead, consider submitting comps when you make an offer. This will show the seller that you’ve done you research and are offering a fair price. The seller may still not budge, but at least you’re showing your offer is made on facts.

In a seller’s market, don’t expect to be able to call all of the shots. You’ll need to be flexible if you really want to get the house. If a seller is flat out crazy, it may be time to walk away.

You Need To Be Prepared

When there are more buyers than homes for sale, you need to be prepared. You want to be able to show sellers that you’re a good, strong buyer. It can help weed out some of the competition and allow a seller to have the confidence that you’ll be able to be approved for a loan.

So, how do you show a seller you’re prepared? It’s very simple: get pre-approved. Contrary to what you may believe, there is a difference between getting pre-approved and pre-qualified. A pre-approval holds more weight than that of a pre-qualification. When you get pre-approved, a loan officer actually verifies the information. They’ll need your pay stubs, bank statements, and they will actually pull your credit. This shows a seller your a competent home buyer.

When it comes to making an offer, be sure that you’re prepared. Be sure that your offer is submitted with a recent pre-approval letter (have your loan officer update the date on it before you make an offer). It’s also important to be responsive when it comes to negotiations. It will show a seller that you’re motivated.

Price Matters Most

Price is everything when it comes to making an offer, particularly when you’re buying a Knoxville home in a competitive market.

When sellers are receiving offers at or above list price, it can be a rookie mistake to make a lowball offer. In the current seller’s market, sellers have the ability to pick and choose among offers, which is why it is essential that you come in with a strong offer from the start.

When considering the price on a Knoxville home for sale, it’s important to utilize your agent as a resource. Your agent can provide you with an understanding of what homes are selling for in the area and what would be a competitive price would be. Ultimately, it’s your decision what to offer, but if you’re serious about a home, it’s important to give the data from your agent a real consideration.

There A Plenty Of Other Fish In The Sea

When you’re buying a home in seller’s market, there are plenty of other buyers out there. You can be that every seller knows this about the current market. If you won’t aren’t will to compromise or are just flat out crazy, sellers will not hesitate about moving on to another buyer.

As a buyer, you need to adjust how you treat sellers in a seller’s market. Unlike a buyer’s market, you’re not favored as a buyer, so you need to curtail everything you do to the seller. This is not to say that you give the seller everything they want, but keep in mind that you need to try and keep the seller happy.

Here are a few things that you can do to help woo the seller:

• Give them what they want in price.
• Up the earnest money to show you’re serious.
• Cut out outrageous contingencies.
• Complete inspections quickly.
• Give them the close date that they want.

The more you are able to woo the seller the better. Your agent can try and see if they are able to find out some information about the seller as well that can help you out. There may be certain things that the seller doesn’t want you to know, but there are other things that their agent may be willing to share. For instance, if a seller is being relocated and living across the country, they may want to close as soon as possible.

Are you thinking about buying a home this year? Please let Knoxville Home Team know if there is any way that we can assist you in your Knoxville home search. Rick can be reached at 865-696-9002 or via email at [email protected]. Kati can be reached at [email protected].

Also, be sure to check out our Knoxville Home Search Page to see what homes are for sale in the area.