Multiple offer situations are very common in our market right now due to low inventory and high demand, even in smaller communities like Vashon. Today I’ll go over a few ways you can win a multiple offer situation as a homebuyer.

So, what’s the best way to beat the competition and score the home of your dreams?

First, set your expectations. If your budget is set at $500,000, don’t look at homes that start at $500,000. You’ll need to start looking at houses that start at $400,000 to see what the market will bear. Your agent will able to talk to you about how high offers have gone over asking price in the area and help you adjust your search accordingly.

Second, you need to increase the value of your offer beyond increasing the price. There are three ways to do this:

1.) Get a pre-inspection. Obviously, if any one of the other offers has done a pre-inspection, then you will need to do so as well. You cannot compete against someone who has done a pre-inspection when you haven’t. You will not win. However, if no one else has done a pre-inspection, then you now have a great opportunity to stand out without adding to the price of the home.

2.) Increase your earnest money deposit. This is something a lot of people don’t think about. I just had a client that put $80,000 down on a $700,000 home. He was going to use it for a down-payment anyway, and it made his offer look that much stronger. He had an inspection contingency as a safety net, and it made him look that much more committed. When two offers are close, the earnest money deposit will make a big difference.

3.) Look to see if you can come up with an additional down payment. If the house comes up short at appraisal, will you be able to make up the difference? Depending on the cost of the house, if you can put down 2-5%, your offer will be that much more competitive.

4.) Understand what the seller needs. Do they need more time? Do they need a fast closing or a rent-back? What can you offer the seller that would make your offer competitive?

Those are some simple ways for you to adjust the offer that you’re writing. Ultimately, you’ll have to work things out with your Realtor. If you need a Realtor, give us a call. Our buyers paid three percent less than average, and our sellers got five percent more. If you have any questions, feel free to reach out.