It seems that just when you think you have the real estate market figured out, it changes. Not so long ago many real estate agents were juggling short sales, but today in many areas they are now grappling with multiple offer situations.

Multiple offers are here to stay as inventory levels continue to decline due to the lack of new construction and the disappearance of short sales and foreclosures. Buyers and investors are coming out in droves buying up everything with a For Sale sign. And in response to this, smart real estate agents need to brush up on their multi-offer strategies to give their buyers the edge they need to win. Sometimes it is not just about the offer amount, and it is the real estate agents job to figure out what that edge really is.

Winning at a multiple offer presentation begins with strongly advising your buyers on how they can put their very best foot forward. There are many ways to make an offer look attractive and not all sellers care only about the price; many of them care about time and convenience. A strong agent tries to find all the possible pain points for the seller and then crafts an offer with their buyers that address those points. There are many different rules (depending on your area of practice) that govern how multiple offers are to be handled and it is in an agents’ best interest to be up on the laws and guidelines in their area.

The first step to putting together a winning offer is to prep your buyers and to give them choices for making their offer as strong as possible. Buyers need to be fully aware of the importance of being competitive and strong on paper when trying to buy a home that will have offers coming in at the same time. Sometimes it is the littlest things that will make the difference to the seller. Most agents naturally think of things like greater earnest money or cash versus financing, but a seller might be swayed by another small detail. Perhaps a shorter closing date or even a longer closing date would be more attractive to the seller; it is your job as the agent to make sure you have all the bases covered when it comes to the offer presentation. Some agents representing the buyer are even including a flexible closing date clause that allows the seller to choose the closing date they want from a list of possible date range (for example: any date between April 15^th and May 31^st). This gives the seller the ability to customize the closing date to their liking without having to counter to the one specific date that might be in the offer. Remember, any counter changes the offer and therefore can be an out for the buyer and may be a risk the seller may not want to take.

There are other things that agents are doing now to get their offers noticed in a multiple offer presentation:

1)  ESCALATION CLAUSES – Buyers need to understand the importance of them addressing the potential competing offers’ price points. Escalation clauses and acceleration clauses are common practice in a multiple offer situation and need to be used correctly.

2)  DOWN PAYMENT – Many sellers find a larger down payment attractive because they feel this shows stronger intent from the buyers and less likelihood that the buyer will walk away from the transaction.

3)  FINANCING VERSUS CASH – In most cases sellers prefer cash offers over financed ones because this eliminates the sellers’ need for an appraisal, the opportunity that something could go wrong with either that or the loan process. But I have seen many sellers in my time accept offers that require financing because the offer was higher in price.

4)  INSPECTION VERSUS PRE-INSPECTION – Many buyers are doing pre-inspections so they can go in with clean offers. This is also attractive to sellers because it eliminates the worry of the seller thinking the inspection might uncover something that could be problematic and potentially damaging to the sale.

5)  TITLE REVIEW – Many buyers are waiving title review contingencies so they can eliminate the possibility that the seller won’t accept their offer because there is still something that needs to be approved prior to the property selling.

6)  BUYER LETTERS – Many agents are presenting hand written letters from their buyers to the seller trying to give their buyer an emotional edge. But you have to be VERY VERY careful with this because of the Fair Housing laws.

7)  APPRAISAL ISSUES – If the buyer is using financing to purchase the property and depending on how much available cash they have for this property it is important to address the burning question the seller might have about the buyers’ ability to purchase the property even in the event the appraisal comes in short. Many agents are including clauses that are very specific about the amount the buyer is willing to accept if the appraisal is low and then they are disclosing how they will address this.

8)  BUYER TO CLEAN HOUSE – Savvy agents are urging their buyers to put in a clause that says that they buyer will have the home cleaned so seller does not need to clean the home. Some sellers have found this very appealing because the last thing they want to do when moving is clean the house they are leaving.

9)  BUYER TO REMOVE GARBAGE FROM HOUSE– When competing in a multiple offer situation you have to assess the possible pain points of the sellers. Whenever a seller moves there is bound to be a lot of garbage that will need to be removed from the home prior to the buyer taking possession of the home. Allowing the sellers to leave their garbage in the garage and the buyer will remove is very appealing to the sellers.

10)  BUYER TO ALLOW RENT BACK – Giving the seller the option to do a short term rent back is often the determining factor for a seller. Never underestimate the power of convenience in your multiple offer negotiations.

11)  MOVING CREDIT – Including a moving credit for the sellers to cover their moving expenses is just another thing you have in your toolbox to offer sellers to sweeten your clients’ offer.

12)  DELAYED POSSESSION – Sellers often want to sell but get overwhelmed when the timing of the closing is discussed. Giving the sellers the option to have the buyer take possession of the property at a time that is more suitable to the seller or that has been delayed to benefit the seller is another type of potential perk the seller might find attractive.

Whenever you are representing a buyer in a multiple offer situation you need to sit down and ask yourself if you have given your buyer every possible chance of winning, by going through all the tools you have in your multiple offer toolbox and using the ones you feel will best suit the offer situation you are presented with. Careful preparation of the offer and the buyer will help you win more multiple offer presentations.