How to Negotiate a House Price When Moving Cross Country

Before you make an offer on a property, you should check that everything is in order, from the installations to the estimated value compared to other similar properties. During the negotiation, it’s important to give reasonable offers and think about which other aspects can lower the cost.

It’s All About Knowing Your Options in Order to Avoid Making a Mistake

First things first, searching for a residence is very different from your average shopping spree for goods or services. When it comes to property, the value is negotiable and flexible, and it’s up to you to buy it at the most reasonable cost and help out your moving budget. No matter how determined the seller seems, he’ll most probably be open to negotiating the house price. That’s why it’s important to do your research thoroughly and to understand all of your options.

Because of the constant fluctuations in the real estate market, the purchase cost of a property often differs from the initial listing. If it’s your first time moving across the country, you’re probably not that confident you can work it out on your own, so keep in mind you can always contact professionals. But even if you have one by your side, it’s important to do thorough research on housing options yourself. It’s just like when you’re hiring cross-country movers – if you do the research right, everything else will come easy.

Understanding the Real Estate Market Will Help You Determine the Actual Value of a Property

When the time to move comes, and you start thinking about where to move, it’s best if your search for housing starts as soon as possible. Whether you’re moving back to your hometown or planning on relocating to a new city alone, you should familiarize yourself with the housing options in your chosen location before booking cross-country moving services.

When you look at a couple of houses in the same neighborhood that are all about the same size, you will be able to compare and recognize if an offer is overpriced easily. Keep in mind that how long a property has been up for sale is also a factor. As we’ve mentioned, working with a realtor can be helpful not only in obtaining a lower final cost but they can also help you understand interest rates, property taxes, and much more.

Find Out if the Home Is on the Buyer’s or the Seller’s Market

It’s very important to learn about the circumstances in which your desired residence is up for sale. In the former case, there is a surplus in housing, and you can have the upper hand in negotiating because the people selling the property will be eager to get it off their hands. But there is also a chance that there are more potential buyers than there are available houses, and that’s when the one who sells it has more bargaining power.

Keep in mind that you should haggle in either case. Knowing the circumstances will help you in determining how low you can go – if there is a surplus in housing, you can start with a lower offer than what’s listed. You should still negotiate even if there’s a higher demand for housing. Just stay aware that there is a limit to a great deal.

Learn as Much Information as Possible Before Making an Offer

As we’ve mentioned, knowing who has the upper hand in the given circumstances is the key to determining how to negotiate when buying a house. That’s why you should not only figure out your mortgage limit but also find out as much as you can about the seller, their financial status, and the reasons for their move. For example, they might be in a hurry to relocate to another state, and in all that chaos of last-minute moving cross country, they just want to get the property off their hands.

Knowing the personal circumstances of the owners can additionally help you figure out what angle to go for during the negotiation. But you shouldn’t stop there – checking out your competition can also give you valuable insight when the bidding wars start. Even when you’re up against a buyer who can afford much more, it doesn’t have to mean that there is a clear winner. Sometimes offering specific benefits you know are important to the owners or writing a thoughtful buyer’s letter can get you the deal.

Checking Every Detail of the Home Is the Key to Figuring Out How to Negotiate a House Price

It’s important to take matters into your own hands instead of blindly believing everything that your realtor tells you. You don’t want to move into your new residence and start the unpacking process only to find out there are a lot of broken and outdated things that need renovation. That’s why it’s important to hire professional inspection services to look through the property from top to bottom.

This will help you figure out if there are any issues that cannot be seen with the naked eye, like cracks in the roof or plumbing problems. Avoid the common long-distance moving mistake of not knowing what you’re getting yourself into. It will save you a lot of time and money knowing what needs to be done to improve your future residence, and you can set credit for repairs with the homeowner. Instead of putting all your efforts into renovating the place, you can start thinking about finding a job in the new city or figuring out how to make new friends.

So, How Do You Negotiate a Lower Price? Tips and Tricks for Getting the Home You Set Your Eyes On

Now that we’ve covered the most important things you should check before starting the negotiation, let’s talk about how to haggle for a house. You might be wondering – what is the most you can negotiate when buying a house? Well, it’s important to understand that while the cost of the purchase is the main point of this discussion, it’s only one piece of the puzzle. There are other things you can try to negotiate if the seller of your desired property doesn’t budge.

Think About the Initial Listing as a Suggestion but Stay Within Reasonable Offers

While you’re working out the final cost, it’s all about staying in the golden middle. It will be expected of you to haggle, but you should avoid making very low offers because the seller will stop seeing you as a potential buyer. It goes without saying, but also avoid making offers that you and your mortgage can’t afford. It’s just not realistic – no matter how much you want it.

There’s a right way to stay determined to get what you want, and then there’s insulting people by lowballing them. So, what is a lowball offer? It’s generally best to try to get around 3% up to 5% below the initial listing, and that’s a completely reasonable negotiation goal that won’t insult anyone. However, in especially lucrative buyer’s markets, you can think about going even lower. If that’s the case, the best thing to do would be to consult with your real estate agent because the last thing you want is to be rejected.

Stay Determined and Think About Other Things You Can Negotiate

If the cost negotiation doesn’t go according to plan, you can always think about other aspects of the deal that can help you save money. People usually don’t realize that almost anything can be negotiated when you purchase a property, from repairs and renovations to furniture. For example, some of the furniture is usually left as a gift from the seller, and you can even ask them to do so if there’s something that catches your eye. You should also mention aspects that benefit them – maybe you’re paying in cash, or you’re willing to close soon.

Don’t hold back when discussing contingencies – they are requirements that must be met for the contract to pull through and become legally binding. Contingencies can include anything from the closing costs to the repairs that should be taken care of. In order to successfully close a deal, each of these contingencies should be outlined in the contract and agreed upon by both parties.

Figuring Out the Closing Costs and Schedule Is the Last Step of the Process

Having to pay extra cash to complete the final transaction often catches first-time buyers off guard. These expenses are usually a couple of percent (2-5%) of the final purchase cost and are split between the two parties. This custom is also an important point to cover during the negotiation process. You should try to get all of them or a percentage of them paid and put that cash towards savings for the move and hiring the packing services you’ll need.

Typically, the end date on which the ownership of a property changes hands falls somewhere within the first three months of signing the contract. If there are a lot of contingencies to fulfill, it can lengthen this schedule. That’s why it’s important to come to a mutual agreement that will work with your moving timeframe. After all, there are a lot of things to do when you’re changing locations – from making a household inventory list to doing research in order to choose the right moving company. If you’re still not super confident about your negotiation skills, check out this helpful video:

How to Negotiate a House Price When Selling – Closing the Deal in the Way That Works for Everyone Involved

When you’re the one selling the property, the roles might be reversed, but the strategy is more or less the same. Here are some tips on how to negotiate when you’re the one walking away with the money:

• Do your research – inform yourself about the offers of similar properties,
• Prepare your property – make your household presentable and desirable, and if there’s a need for it, you can always put away the unnecessary things by booking storage services,
• Organize an open viewing – refuse to take any offers until the viewing to foster a sense of competition and start a bidding war,
• Play hardball – be determined not to lower your initial listing too much, put an expiration date on your counter offers to ensure a speedy response, and even reject a few offers if you have to,
• Always pay for closing costs and set credit for repairs – up the estimate by that same amount in order to avoid losing money.

Contact the Long-Distance Movers and Start Planning for the Household of Your Dreams

If you’ve done your research and remained determined throughout the whole process, chances are you’ve closed the deal for a very reasonable amount. Now, all that’s left to do is gather the moving essentials and read up on helpful relocation hacks. You can consult our ultimate moving guide to ensure everything goes according to plan, and when you’ve got reputable movers by your side, you can count on security during the move. Congratulations! You’re a homeowner now.