Once you have a clear understanding of what type of property you are looking for, what features the property must have, and how much you can and want to spend, it is time to find the right property for you.
Take a Drive
If you do not know the area well already, get to know the neighborhoods, complexes, or subdivisions that interest you. Drive around and get a feel for what it would be like to own a property in the area. Start getting a sense of the properties available in those areas. Your Realtor can assist you by suggesting areas and neighborhoods you may not have considered.
Look Online
A significant majority of available properties can be found online. We recommend Realtracs.com for homes in middle Tennessee. It is the site used by most real estate professionals, and it tends to be the first site updated as a result. As your Realtors, we will search for you online and can automatically notify you when new homes fitting your criteria become available.
You can also look online for information regarding schools, crime, and other factors affecting your home search. When you find properties you would like to view, we can set appointments convenient with your schedule.
Make an Offer
Once you have identified the property you want to purchase, it is time to make an offer. The negotiation strategy for a particular property will be very fact specific. For instance, the list price of the home, how “hot” the market is, how desirable the particular location is, and many other factors should all play a role in the offer you make.
In a competitive market, taking creative steps to make your offer stand out is important. There are several options, some of which we recommend and some of which we typically do not recommend, such as:
- Buying “as is”
- Escalation clauses
- Closing flexibility
- Waiving appraisal or paying over appraisal, and
- Waiving or limiting inspections.
Again, we do not recommend all of these in a typical negotiation, but they can be considered on a case-by-case basis.
Once you have made an offer, the seller has the option to accept, reject, or counter your offer, and if the seller has received multiple offers, the seller gets to choose with whom to negotiate. The negotiations continue until the buyer and seller agree, at which point the property is “under contract.”