• Branson House Realty
  • (417) 334-7653

Steps to Submitting An Offer

The following steps assume you have already selected your Real Estate Agent and are working under an agreement with them. If not, please go to the “Buyer Info” tab on the menu bar and choose “Selecting Your Agent “.

Determine a Price

How do you determine a “fair price”?  What's “Market Value”?  A common definition of Market Value is “What a knowledgeable, willing, and unpressed buyer would probably pay to a knowledgeable, willing, and unpressed seller in the market.”  Appraiser's typically look at what price similar homes in similar areas over the previous six months have sold for to determine “Market Value”.  But the biggest factors in determining the value of a given home more likely will be what a Buyer is prepared to pay and what a Seller is prepared to accept.  Sometimes, the two agree with the “Market”, and other times not so much.

Define the Terms

Work with your Agent to define the terms of your offer.  In addition to the offering price as just discussed, defining terms may also include, but not be limited to the date you are prepared to close escrow, the amount of “Earnest Money” you will submit with the offer, as well as other “Contingencies” such as the terms of the financing you are willing to accept from your lender, an appraisal equal to or greater than the amount you have offered to pay, satisfactory results of a home inspection, and satisfactory results of a title search demonstrating the Seller's ability to convey clear title to the home.

Define Time Frames

Each of the Contingency items listed in your offer should be accompanied by a Time Frame within which the Contingency must be addressed to your satisfaction. This lets the Sellers know how long they need to be prepared to wait while you conduct your Due Diligence, as well as making sure that you keep everything moving forward in a timely manner, as well.

Be Prepared to Negotiate

Oftentimes, an Offer to Purchase from a Buyer is met with a Counter Offer from a Seller. And, Counter Offer Number One may be met with Counter Offer Number Two. And so on. This phase of the process can be where having an Agent that knows the market and understands negotiating can be critical to a successful outcome. Usually, if a Seller truly wishes to sell and a Buyer truly wishes to buy, the Counter Offer phase will result in what is known as a “Meeting of the Minds” and a deal will be made. Once an offer has been made and accepted, and the parties have been notified, you are officially "Under Contract".

If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to contact us. We would love to hear from you!

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