3 Ways to Gain an Edge in a Seller’s Market

A seller’s market arises when demand exceeds supply, meaning there are too many interested buyers for the real estate inventory. With fewer homes available, sellers are at an advantage and home sales are happening fast. Buyers are experiencing a higher level of competition than normal. As a buyer – what do you do?

Northern Nevada has a challenging real estate market due to low housing supply and incredible job growth in the area. Our team of experts has over 35 years of combined experience in the luxury market and we wanted to share a few tips with you to help you gain an edge as a competitive buyer.

1.        Get Pre-Approved

In this seller's market, it's not unusual for your offer to be up against many others and it’s critical to get the edge in this situation. If you are coming to the negotiating table with either a loan or cash, be prepared to present a Pre-Approval Letter or Proof of Funds with your offer. The more prepared you are, the easier the decision for the seller to pick you over the other offers on the table.

2.        Structuring the Offer

If you do need loan financing, structure the offer to compete with cash. If you are in the position to do so, waiving the appraisal and providing appraisal gap coverage can give the Seller confidence to accept your offer. Limit contingencies to keep your offer clean and straightforward. Perhaps you might even consider taking on a larger portion of the closing costs. Don’t be afraid to get creative!

3.        The Price is Right

It's not uncommon to offer above List Price to beat out the competition. In the Luxury Market specifically (homes priced over $1M), a third of the homes sold in March were over asking price with an average over-asking of $85,250.* Set your budget and expectations ahead of time, so you know what you can offer and when to walk away. As an assertive real estate team, we can help you figure that out and advocate for you!

(*3/1/2021 - 3/15/2021, courtesy of Dickson Realty)