Buying a Salt Lake Home in a Sellers Market

When the Salt Lake real estate market is hot and homes are selling quickly, it can be difficult to buy a home. In a sellers market you will have to compete against other buyers and often you may find yourself in a multiple offer situation (this is when multiple buyers make an offer for the same house). To make certain you have a good chance of beating the competition there are certain things you can do to give yourself a buyers advantage.

• Sell Your Current Home. When considering an offer, the seller will take into account any contingencies you place on the sale. If you have not already sold your home, the chances are your offer will be contingent upon your current homes sale (unless you can afford to pay for 2 homes). This brings a level of uncertainty that may well unsettle the seller and makes your offer look unattractive. Because of this you should ideally sell your home before making an offer on another property or at least have your home under contract.
• Get Prequalified. One of the things a seller will ask for when you submit your offer is a prequalification letter. This letter tells the seller you are approved for the mortgage amount and provides more weight to your offer.
• Detail Your Requirements. What features do you want your home to have, how many bedrooms, what size garage, what size lot etc. If you document your requirements, you can then compare these requirements against any homes you view. This will then aid you in making a quick decision, on whether or not you want to write an offer.
• Check New Listings. The best homes will sell fast. If you are to have any chance of buying, you will need to capture new listings as soon as they are put on the market. The best way of doing this is ask your Realtor for a hot sheet. The Realtor enters your requirements for a home into the MLS and new listings are emailed to you when they are put on the market. Of course, this also means that you will need to regularly check your email and be prepared to act quickly.
• Quick Offer Decision. Once you have found a home, be prepared to immediately write an offer. If you wait, the chances are that someone else will jump in and beat you to it.
• No Lowball Offers. Make sure any offer you write is a reasonable offer, and contains the minimum number of contingencies. The seller will not accept lowball offers and any contingencies may put you at a disadvantage compared with other offers.

Return to Home Buyer and Seller Tips

Return to: Salt Lake City Utah Real Estate