7 Keys to Winning a Multiple Offer Situation in Our Market

To win a multiple offer situation as a buyer in our Greater Milwaukee market, I have seven tips for you to follow.

In our current market, if you see a home you like that’s a hot property in a favorable price range, there could be multiple offers for it. 

If you find yourself in this situation and have to compete with other buyers, here are seven things you can do to make your offer the best of the bunch: 

1. Make sure the seller knows you’re qualified. The best way to do this is to get a pre-approval letter (not a pre-qualification letter) from your lender and submit it along with your offer for at least the mortgage amount or higher. 

2. Submit a large earnest money deposit. A normal deposit in today’s market is 1% of the purchase price, so make yours 2%, 3%, or even 5% of the purchase price. If your offer doesn’t get accepted, you’ll get that money back anyway. 

3. Find out from your agent what’s important to the seller. Do they prefer an earlier or later closing date? Do they want certain items excluded from the sale? Your agent can find these things out by talking to the listing agent prior to you making your offer. 

4. Give the seller time to move. I understand you want to move in as fast as possible, but normal closings take about 45 days, so if you’re expecting them to be out in 20 to 30 days, that’s unrealistic unless it’s a vacant property. 

5. Consider shortening or waiving some of the contingencies you have. For example, instead of waiting two or three weeks to do a home inspection, do it within seven days. If you think the property is good enough as it is, consider waiving the inspection altogether. The fewer contingencies you bring, the better chance your offer has of being accepted. 

6. Let the seller know you love their house. I suggest writing a brief letter to the seller outlining why you love their house and why they should pick you to be its buyer. And remember—be sincere. 

Make your first offer your highest and best one.

7. Make a good offer. Make your highest and best offer now because you may not get countered. Excuse the listing price and have your agent do a comparative market analysis—sometimes properties are priced below market value, and you may have to offer thousands of dollars more to get that property. 

If you have any questions about getting your next home in today’s competitive market, don’t hesitate to reach out to us. We’d be happy to assist you.

How Can a Counter Offer Help You Get the Deal You Want in a Real Estate Transaction?

There are many great Metro area homes for sale. Click here to perform full home search, or if you're thinking of selling your home, click here to contact us for a FREE Home Price Evaluation so you know what buyers will pay for your home in today's market. You may also call us at (262) 797-6453 or (262) 798-1162 for a FREE home buying or selling consultation to answer any of your real estate questions.  

The real estate process can be confusing at times, so today I want to briefly discuss one aspect of it that often catches people off guard: counter offers. Often, people don't know how quickly they need to respond to a counter offer.

If you're selling your property and you receive an offer that is unacceptable, you can always counter the offer in either price or terms before submitting it to the prospective buyer. The same works in reverse: if you're a buyer who doesn't like the seller's offer, you can rework the offer to fit your needs and resubmit it to the seller. Counter offers are a nice tool to use when buying or selling real estate. When you're selling, it's a good way to avoid taking a deal that is unfavorable to you without turning the buyer down outright.

Now that you know how a counter offer is used, you're probably curious about how quickly you need to respond with one. When an offer is submitted, there is a Binding Acceptance, the date of which a counter offer pretty much makes irrelevant. In my experience, however, the quicker you respond to an offer or counter offer, the better the chance that you and the other party come to an agreement.

If you have any questions about this topic, or if you need real estate assistance of any kind, please don't hesitate to reach out to us. We would love to hear from you!

The House on Holy Hill

There are many great Metro area homes for sale. Click here to perform full home search, or if you're thinking of selling your home, click here to contact us for a FREE Home Price Evaluation so you know what buyers will pay for your home in today's market. You may also call us at (262) 797-6453 or (262) 798-1162 for a FREE home buying or selling consultation to answer any of your real estate questions. 

I have an amazing home for sale on 12 1/2 acres with breathtaking views of Holy Hill, one of the most beautiful basilicas that you'll find anywhere in the country.

The home is custom-built, and it's a 4 bedroom, 4.5 bath, 8,300 sq. ft. property. The architecture is unique, with multiple A-frames and a copper roof that make it feel modern and quaint but also rustic and homey. There is also an in-ground swimming pool and an attached 4-car garage.

This property was built in 2011 by Wisconsin Log Homes, and you can see the beautiful mahogany woodwork on the front door. It's apparent that a lot of love went into furnishing this home.

 

There is a wet bar in the great room, and the kitchen is outfitted with all of the latest and greatest appliances. The ceilings are all vaulted, making this large property feel more like a castle than a home! The mudroom is large, which is perfect if you have kids. There's even a shower in the mudroom designed specifically for your dogs!

The master bathroom has a large Jacuzzi tub with dual fireplaces on each side, and the floors are heated. There is also a large walk-in shower with multiple shower heads, allowing for the ultimate spa experience.

The lower level has a theater room that can house up to twelve people, and there are an extra three bedrooms on that level with walk-in closets. There are also rooms that could be used as wine cellar or storage for hunting purposes. A fully-equipped gym is also situated on the lower level, and it has a sauna and a steam shower attached to it. Last but not least, there is a home gymnasium that attaches to a two-car garage.

This home also uses a geothermal heating system, and there are two tankless water heaters that were both installed very recently.

In the back of the property there is a fully-stocked pond that's 20 feet deep, and it's stocked with bass, panfish, and even walleye! On top of this, there are two deer-hunting stands.

This home is listed at $3.25 million, but for someone who loves the outdoors, this is quite the steal! Please don't hesitate to reach out to me if you're interested or if you know someone who might be!

How to Respond to an Offer on Your Home

There are many great Metro area homes for sale. Click here to perform full home search, or if you're thinking of selling your home, click here to contact us for a FREE Home Price Evaluation so you know what buyers will pay for your home in today's market. You may also call us at (262) 797-6453 or (262) 798-1162 for a FREE home buying or selling consultation to answer any of your real estate questions.

Today I wanted  to answer a question I’ve been getting quite frequently. A lot of sellers have been asking me about how quickly they should respond to offers on their homes. Normally, when an offer is written, a buyer is going to want to get an answer pretty quickly, usually within 24-48 hours, unless it’s a weekend. 

The quicker you respond to an offer as a seller, the better chance you have of putting the deal together. What are your options? If you like the offer, go ahead and accept it. If the offer is not acceptable to you, we strongly recommend making a counter-offer, so you still have a chance at getting a deal done, at least more so than if you would have declined the offer.

If you have any questions about this process and what your options are, feel free to give us a call or send us an email. We can’t wait to hear from you!

The Benefits of a Home Warranty

There are many great Metro area homes for sale. Click here to perform full home search, or if you're thinking of selling your home, click here to contact us for a FREE Home Price Evaluation so you know what buyers will pay for your home in today's market. You may also call us at (262) 797-6453 or (262) 798-1162 for a FREE home buying or selling consultation to answer any of your real estate questions.

Today, I want to briefly discuss how to use a home warranty to help sell your home. 

Here at Shorewest, we work with a company called Home Security of America, which provides warranties on the sale of used or existing homes. Many of our clients use these to help sell their home. They are attractive to buyers because they cover heating, air conditioning, plumbing, electrical, and appliances. Essentially, warranties cover the guts of your home, not the structural items like roofs, basements, and windows. 

 

Home warranties cover the buyer for one year from the day of closing. Plus, the seller gets free coverage while they are listing. Homeowners use warranties as a selling feature. For instance, if you have a home warranty on your home, but the three other homes that buyers are looking at do not have a warranty, your home will be viewed in a much more favorable light.

Warranties provide buyers and sellers with peace of mind. If something happens after closing, the buyer isn't going going to call the person who sold them the home, they're going to call the home warranty company, who will then come out and fix the problem. The basic single-family home warranty, which covers all the entities in your home, is about $564. Deductibles range from $75-$100, depending on the plan you go with.

If you have any questions about home warranties, or if you need real estate assistance of any kind, don't hesitate to reach out to us. We would love to hear from you!