When you find a house you like, how do you buy it? You make an offer to the seller. Your offer will be in writing on a contract form approved by the Florida Association of Realtors and the Florida Bar, and it will be accompanied by a deposit, usually a check in the amount of from five to twenty percent of the sales price.
It is at this point that the benefits of having an experienced Realtor like Tauber Real Estate Services will become apparent to you. We will help you write the contract and give careful consideration to what kind of offer the seller would likely accept. Should there be any contingencies -- for an inspection, for financing, for the sale of your current home? Should the offer be at listing price or lower? Once we have a firm written offer, we will make sure it is properly “presented” to the seller by going through the contract item by item and explaining each. Having been through this process many times allows us to give you sage advice on whether the terms and conditions of the offer will cause the seller to accept the offer, reject the offer or make a counteroffer, which are the seller’s three choices. Depending on the Seller’s choice, negotiations after the initial written offer often are conducted verbally until an agreement is reached.
Only the very best listing agents like Tauber Real Estate Services know the intricacies of negotiating with a seller to insure that you get your home for the very best price. Some buyers, for example, think it is a good negotiating tactic to make a really low offer at first. But that may pose some unwanted risks. If your low offer is rejected or countered, another prospective buyer may submit an offer that the seller may accept before you have the opportunity to submit another offer or accept the seller’s counter. We have even had experiences where a buyer made a low offer that the seller took as an insult and refused to entertain any more offers from the buyer. Once the seller accepts your offer, or you accept the seller’s, we will insure that the appropriate written documents are created and properly executed. The deposit will be placed in the listing broker’s trust account to be held until closing.