Are you considering making an offer on a Texas home? There are many things to remember as you go through the process. To help you make an informed decision, here are answers to common questions about making an offer on a home in Texas.
What Should I Consider Before Making an Offer?
When making an offer on a house, it’s important to consider your budget and other factors. Think about how much you can afford to pay for the property and how much you would like to pay, and use this information to set your initial offer price. Additionally, you should remember that you may need to negotiate once you submit your offer.
What Are Common Terms Associated with Home Buying Offers?
There are several terms associated with offers for buying homes in Texas. It’s important to familiarize yourself with these terms to know what your offer includes. Common terms include earnest money deposits, inspection contingencies, and financing contingencies.
How Much Can I Negotiate With My Offer?
The amount of wiggle room you have to negotiate depends on several factors, such as market conditions and the seller’s investment in the property. You should always strive to get the best deal possible for your budget, but remember to be reasonable and respectful when negotiating.
What Documentation Should Accompany My Offer?
To ensure that your offer is legally binding, it must be accompanied by documentation outlining its terms and conditions. This includes the purchase price, closing date, financing requirements, and more. The paperwork should also include signatures from both the buyer and seller.
Is a low offer a good idea?
While your low offer in a normal market might be rejected immediately, a motivated seller will either accept or make a counteroffer in a buyer’s market.
Full-price offers or above are more likely to be accepted by the seller. But there are other considerations involved:
- Is the offer contingent upon anything, such as selling the buyer’s current house? If so, a low offer, even at full price, may not be as attractive as an offer without that condition.
- Is the offer made on the house as is, or does the buyer want the seller to make some repairs or lower the price instead?
- Is the offer all cash, meaning the buyer has waived the financing contingency? If so, an offer at less than the asking price may be more attractive to the seller than a full-price offer with a financing contingency.
What contingencies should be put in an offer?
Most offers include two standard contingencies: a financing contingency, which makes the sale dependent on the buyers’ ability to obtain a loan commitment from a lender, and an inspection contingency, which allows buyers to have professionals inspect the property to their satisfaction.
A buyer could forfeit his or her deposit under certain circumstances, such as backing out of the deal for a reason not stipulated in the contract.
The purchase contract must include the seller’s responsibilities, such as passing clear title, maintaining the property in its present condition until closing, and making any agreed-upon repairs.
Whose obligation is it to disclose pertinent information about a property?
Obligations to disclose information about a property vary from state to state.
Under the strictest laws, the seller and the seller’s broker, if there is one, must disclose all facts materially affecting the value or desirability of the property which are known or accessible only to him.
Items sellers often disclose include homeowners association dues; whether or not work done on the house meets local building codes and permits requirements; the presence of any neighborhood nuisances or noises which a prospective buyer might not notice, such as a dog that barks every night or poor TV reception; any death within three years on the property and any restrictions on the use of the property, such as zoning ordinances or association rules.
It is wise to check your state’s disclosure rules before a home purchase.
How do you find out the value of a troubled property?
Buyers considering a foreclosure property should obtain as much information as possible from the lender about the range of bids sought.
It also is important to examine the property. If you cannot get into a foreclosure property, check with surrounding neighbors about the property’s condition.
It also is possible to make your own cost comparison by researching comparable properties recorded at local county recorders and assessor’s offices or through Internet sites specializing in property records.
Are low-ball offers advisable?
A low-ball offer is a term used to describe an offer on a house substantially less than the asking price.
While any offer can be presented, a low-ball offer can sour a prospective sale and discourage the seller from negotiating. Unless the house is very overpriced, the offer will probably be rejected.
Before making an offer, you should always do your homework about comparable prices in the neighborhood. It also pays to know something about the seller’s motivation. For example, a lower price with a speedy escrow may motivate a seller who must move, has another house under contract, or must sell quickly for other reasons.
What is the difference between list and sales prices?
The list price is the price tag put on a house in a real estate listing; it usually is only an estimate of what the seller would like to get for the property. The sales price is the amount a property sells for. It may be the same as the listing price, or higher or lower, depending on how accurately the property was originally priced and on market conditions.
A seller may need to adjust the listing price if there have been no offers within the first few months of the property’s listing period.
Can you buy homes below market?
While a typical buyer may look at five to 10 homes before making an offer, an investor who makes bargain buys usually go through many more. Most experts agree it takes a lot of determination to find a real “bargain.” There are several ways to buy a bargain property:
- Buy a fixer-upper in a transitional neighborhood, improve it, and keep it or resell it at a higher price.
- Buy a foreclosure property (after doing your research carefully).
- Buy a house due to be torn down and move it to a new lot.
- Buy a partial interest in a piece of real estate, such as part of a tenants-in-common partnership.
- Buy a leftover house in a new-home development.
Who gets the furnishings when a home is sold?
Any personal property permanently attached to a house (such as drapery rods, built-in bookcases, tacked-down carpeting, or a furnace) automatically stays with the house unless specified otherwise in the sales contract. But you can consider anything that is not nailed down negotiable. This most often involves appliances not built in (washer, dryer, refrigerator, for example), although some sellers will be interested in negotiating for other items, such as a piano.
What are some tips on negotiation?
The more you know about a seller’s motivation, the stronger your negotiating position. For example, a seller who must move quickly due to a job transfer may be amenable to a lower price with a speedy escrow. Other so-called “motivated sellers” include people going through a divorce or who have already purchased another home.
Remember that the listing price is what the seller wants to receive but is not necessarily what they will settle for. Before making an offer, check the recent sales prices of comparable homes in the neighborhood to see how the seller’s asking price stacks up.
Some experts discourage making deliberate low-ball offers. While such an offer can be presented, it can also sour the sale and discourage the seller from negotiating.
What are the standard contingencies?
Most offers include two standard contingencies: a financing contingency, which makes the sale dependent on the buyers’ ability to obtain a loan commitment from a lender, and an inspection contingency, which allows buyers to have professionals inspect the property to their satisfaction.
A buyer could forfeit his or her deposit under certain circumstances, such as backing out of the deal for a reason not stipulated in the contract.
The purchase contract must include the seller’s responsibilities, such as passing clear title, maintaining the property in its present condition until closing, and making any agreed-upon repairs.
What is the difference between list price, sales price, and appraised value?
The list price is a seller’s advertised price, which is usually only a rough estimate of what the seller wants to get. Sellers can price high, low, or close to what they hope to get. To judge whether the list price is a fair one, be sure to consult comparable sales prices in the area.
The sales price is the amount of money you, as a buyer, would pay for a property.
The appraisal value is a certified appraiser’s estimate of the worth of a property, and is based on comparable sales, the condition of the property, and numerous other factors.
