Almost as important as the negotiations of the price of a home for sale is the closing date. Before I craft an offer from one of my Buyers, I ALWAYS call the Listing Agent to see what would be the ideal closing timeframe for the Sellers. The Sellers may not have found
a home yet and need a longer closing OR they may have found one or have already moved out so a short timeframe would be a benefit. Do they have a tenant or older child who they need to find housing options for?
Time of year also plays a part in the Sellers desires. Are they waiting for the end of the school year or want to stay in the house over the holidays. What family limitations are looming? Is there a wedding, a surgical procedure, expecting a new baby, a vacation, a graduation? Do they need to be at their new location for a job change?
If you can accommodate the Sellers’ ideal closing time frame, they might be more negotiable in price. I recently had a Seller who was building a new home. They accepted $15,000 less than the value because the buyer allowed them to stay in the house until they were ready to move into the new home eliminating the need for 2 moves and temporary housing. I had another Seller refuse an over list price offer and accept a lower one because the higher buyer would not wait until after a family wedding.
Part of your negotiating strategy should be, “what benefits do you bring to the table”? They include price but also financing, money down, no house to sell, extra items included AND closing date. It is a package that is not ONLY about the price. DON’T LEAVE THE CLOSING DATE AS A FOOTNOTE. You will end up negotiating an offer and then finding out it doesn’t work for either party because of the closing date.