How to Beat Other Buyers When It Comes To Your Dream Home

I'd like you to put yourself in a seller’s shoes. You’re considering two offers to purchase your home:

• Buyer 1 offered $250,000, hasn’t been pre-approved for a loan, and is asking for a 21-day option period
• Buyer 2 offered $245,000 has a pre-approval letter from a lender, and requested a seven-day option period

Sure, $5,000 is real money. But is it worth waiting three weeks to see if the first buyer will qualify for a loan while hoping buyer two won’t move on to another property? (By the way, a buyer can walk away from an offer during the option period for any reason at all … including I just don’t want this house anymore.)

Many sellers faced with the choice above would go with Buyer 2. With that in mind, here are two ways to give yourself the best odds at getting your offer accepted.

Ready to buy? Prove it!

A pre-approval letter from a lender shows buyers you mean business. Pre-approval is a written commitment from a lender to provide you a loan … subject to an acceptable appraisal and a few other conditions. It’s based on a thorough examination of your financial situation.

Getting pre-approved does not obligate you to take out a loan. It does, however, show a seller you have the ability to purchase her home.

Don’t confuse pre-approval with pre-qualification. Pre-qualification is based on self-reported information and does not carry the weight of pre-approval.

Find out what makes an attractive offer … then submit one

There are many components to a real estate offer. That gives you plenty of opportunities to make your offer stand out from others in a good way … or not.

A lengthy option period, small amount of earnest-money, contingency clauses, and a run-on list of items to convey all could push the seller toward another offer. Even an offer for less money.

Before you even find a house you’d like to buy, you may want to sit down with your Texas REALTOR® and talk about the contract. That way, when you do come across your dream home, you’ll be able to craft an offer that will leave other buyers shaking their heads at “the one that got away.”