I recently had a Seller who turned down a full price CASH offer. Many agents would have a stroke if this happened to them. There are many reasons not to accept an offer. In this case, the Seller was building a new home in Westchester County. The offer came in in August and the Buyer was insistent on a 30 day closing.
The Sellers’ new home would not be done until late December. We sat down and calculated 2 moves, storage, and temporary housing cost and determined that it would cost the Seller an additional $30,000. We were all confident that even if we needed to lower the price, we could sell this lovely home and coordinate the closings, greatly reducing costs and stress. The Seller ultimately received $10,000 less but realized a positive delta of $20,000 and then, what is minimal stress worth??
This is just one example of the fact that an offer is more than the price negotiated.
Is the Buyer flexible if the Seller needs more time?
Does the Buyer have a property that needs to sell?
Is the financing solid and with a LOCAL lender?
Is the Buyer asking for additional personal property?
Is the Buyer reasonable with building inspection issues?
Is the time line for additional deposit, contract signing, and inspections reasonable?
Is the Buyer looking for early occupancy?
Is the Buyer willing to clean out the house?
(important in probate homes.)
Can the Buyer accommodate a closing based on the needs of the Seller?
(special occasions, vacations, school)
Your agent needs to be a professional who asks the correct questions to determine what is important for you when selling your home to determine what criteria are non-starters in a negotiation situation.