Smart Buyers Ask These Questions Before They Make An Offer On A Knoxville Home

There are no stupid questions when you buy a home. Whether it’s your first or last, smart Knoxville buyers ask questions and lots of them.

Before making an offer on a Knoxville home for sale, it’s important to ask a few key questions. Here are the questions that smart buyers ask before they make an offer on a Knoxville Home.

What Price Should I Offer?

Price is the most important things when you make an offer on a home. It’s truly the most important thing to the seller and the buyer. There are very few things that can outweigh it. Before making an offer, look at what other homes has sold for in the area to help determine the proper price.

Your realtor can provide you with some references of what homes have sold for in your area and what homes are currently for sale. This is the best way to help you determine what price that you offer. Your realtor can help you take into account what additional things may fluctuate on the home that you’re making an offer on.

Can I Afford This Home?

Before making an offer, smart buyers ask themselves whether or not they can afford the home. You may be pre-approved for way more than you want to spend, but that doesn’t mean that you have to spend that much.

When you make an offer, be sure that you truly calculate how much it will cost you to own that home. That means looking property taxes, homeowner’s association dues, and any costs associated with owning the home. You don’t want to be spending more than you feel comfortable with on a home otherwise you could regret it later one.

If I Get Into A Bidding War, How High Will I Go?

Even when you love a home, you need to know how high you’re willing to go. At some point, for every buyer, there becomes a point where you’re just not willing to pay that much for a home. In a seller’s market, you need to know this from the start, since you’re more likely to get into a bidding war.

Before you make an offer, know how much you’re willing to pay for a home. Come up with the top figure and stick to it, otherwise, you could find yourself in a situation where you end up regretting your purchase. This is a personal number. You know your budget and how much will be too much for you to pay.

How Long Has The Home Been On The Market?

Before making an offer, it’s important to know how long a home has been on the market. By knowing this, you can have a better understanding of a seller’s mindset and whether not there may be more room for bargaining.

When a home hasn’t been on the market long, you may not have as much bargaining room, especially in a seller’s market. Homes sell quicker in a seller’s market and there aren’t enough homes for buyers. When you don’t make a competitive offer, a seller will be willing to wait for something better.

But, when a home has been on the market for a long time, you may find yourself with a bit more bargaining room. At that point, showings have probably dwindled and the seller really only has the option to drop the price in order to get the house to sell. When that is the case, you can try to see how much room you have to bargain with the seller.

What Does The Seller Want?

Finally, if you can, you want to ask about what the seller wants. Your agent can inquire and see if there is any information that the seller’s agent is willing to share. Keep in mind, the listing agent is legally bound not to reveal anything the seller doesn’t want you to know, but sometimes there are things that a seller is willing to share.

For example, a seller may be transferred and want to close as soon as possible. This can help you key into the fact that a seller wants to close quickly, so you should include a quicker close date in your offer. Or, you may find out that a seller is willing to part with certain items in a home, so you can probably include them in your contract at minimal cost.

The more you know about the seller, the better. A listing agent may not be willing to spill everything, but there may be certain things they’re willing to share. The more you know the more you can curtail your offer to meet a seller’s needs.

Are you thinking about buying a Knoxville this year? Please let us know if there is any way that Knoxville Home Team can assist you. Rick can be reached at 865-696-9002 or via email at [email protected]. Kati can be reached at [email protected] or by phone at 865-696-1888.

If you’re ready to start your home search today, be sure to our Knoxville Home Search Page.