How to Get the Competitive Edge Over Other Home Buyers

Today, the real estate market is saturated with home buyers looking for homes but lacking in properties to buy. This means, that if you're on the hunt for a new home, you're going to need to take the right steps in order to stand out from the crowd. Follow these five tips to get the competitive edge over other home buyers. 

Follow the Pre-Buying Checklist

The most important part of the pre-home buying process? Make sure you get preapproved before you start seriously looking. That last thing you want to do is find a home you love, but be set back a day or more waiting for a preapproval and someone else scoops up your dream home. Being pre-approved will allow you to act fast when you do find the home you’re looking for.

Team Up with a Proactive Agent

The very best thing you can do is to get connected with a proactive, aggressive agent. A good local real estate agent would have access to inside information on houses coming on the market that would fit your needs, even before they are listed, and would locate currently listed homes that match your wish list. Additionally, they know exactly what you need to do to give you the best shot of getting the home of your dreams.

Be Informed & Decisive

There is two things you should do here: do your research and make a list.

First, be a good student of the local area and homes. Find out what the local school district is, where the local parks and attractions are, what the traffic is typically like in the area, etc. If you know these things ahead of time, you won’t have to post-pone an offer on a home because you already know the anatomy of the area.

Second, make sure you’ve detailed out all your must-haves, wants and wishes when it comes to the type of home you want. Make sure to list the location, the design, the square footage, the must-haves and the things you can compromise on. This will help you to identify the right ones when they do come along.

Be Quick to the Draw

See a home or two that peaks your interest? Don’t hesitate; contact your agent to get in and view it as soon as possible (within 24 hours if possible). The inventory of homes in Greater Lansing is low this year, so the most desirable homes will go extremely fast. Many of those we’ve found to sell within a day or two of it being listed.

Also if you are working with an agent that’s on top of it, they can get exclusive information on for-sale homes that aren’t public yet that fit within your wish list to get you in for a viewing.

Create a Compelling Offer

If you really love the home or property, be prepared to give your best offer. Whether that be a full or above offer, an all cash offer, or a conventional loan purchase (requiring 20% down). If you’re not offering at least market value on a competitive home, your chances are slim that you’ll rise above the rest.

Additionally, don’t ask for seller concessions, such as asking for closing costs because if others are offering as much as you without concessions, you’ll lose your shot.

Buying trick: Want to stand out even more from the crowd? Write a heartfelt note to the seller detailing out your impressions and feelings about the home. A real estate sale can be very impersonal, so adding this element can help you when negotiating with the sellers.

Keep in mind that not all of these tricks will work for every home and some may work better than others. However, in order to compete in a low inventory, high buyer volume market, you need to be proactive, organized and vocal.

Are there any other tricks that you’ve tried and had success in purchasing your home in a crowded market? Tell us about it in the comments!