With the way the current market is, sellers are receiving multiple offers with some of those received being much higher than list price. The competition is fierce, especially if your home is price correctly. With the lack of inventory, properties are selling quickly with many buyers all competing for the same home. That being said, do you know what to do when you receive 3, 4, or even 10 offers on your property?
How do you pick the best offer?

These simple tips will go a long ways when determining how to handle multiple offers on your home.

First off, you want to make sure you select a list price that is in line with the current market activity. You don’t want to list your home too high to where it ends up sitting on the market for too long without general interest or showings. You will ultimately then need to do a price reduction which will cause people to wonder,
“What’s wrong with that home?” “Why isn’t it selling?”

Doing a comparative market analysis will give you the best idea of what a home should be listed for. From there, if priced correctly, you should expect to receive offers within the first few days of being on the market and in the MLS.

The next thing you want to do after selecting a solid list price is to set a timeframe of when buyers need to have their offers in by. It creates an urgency to where a buyer MUST view your home immediately, and submit an offer right away to show their interest. This will help to get the looky-loos out of the way so you can focus on those people who really want to buy your home.

Once you receive those multiple offers, the real focus is on the terms and conditions of the offer.

What is the price?

Is it financed or is it cash?

How much down payment are they putting down?

How many days is the escrow?

Those are the main things that people think of right away, however there are other costly or pertinent items that a seller can negotiate to help them pick the best offer that suits their needs.

How long are the contingency timeframes?

Are they asking for termite repair? Government Retrofitting?

Do they want the appliances?

Is there a request for closing costs?

Will they give you time to move out?

These are all items that are necessary when picking a solid offer that you are going to open escrow with. You can counter all of them, or one of them, but just remember, don’t get too greedy and demanding that you end up scaring a good buyer away.  If you have a solid offer, but you counter it too aggressively because you have other ones on the table as well, that solid offer may disappear, and then you’re left with ones that weren’t so attractive to begin with.
Make sure you and your realtor take the time to strategize to ensure you will make the best choice and get the best deal possible.