Buyers have surely considered “what they would take for the house,” however, starting there is not going to get you your price. That is a trap to avoid well. A good answer is “I’d take an offer of my asking price right now. What are you offering?” A response like that puts the ball back in the buyer’s court to make an offer, which is where the seller wants it to be. Hearing the offer from the buyer allows the seller negotiating room. The seller can accept, reject, counteroffer, or consider the offer. A buyer’s offer will help you set parameters or take a midpoint to work from. There is a tendency in people to increase or decrease the offers they make in the same fashion as the other party does. A counteroffer midway between the asking point and the buyer’s offer might elicit another offer to split that difference. A counteroffer that does not directly respond to the original offer, but instead offers a 10% price reduction, might receive another offer 10% better than the buyer’s initial proposal. The seller can control the price negotiations with a previously planned counteroffer strategy. The person who is making the first offer is at a disadvantage. Guard against making this mistake. There is always the possibility that the buyer’s first offer will be better than what an anxious seller might propose. In that case, you are already ahead.
Take advantage of the power of “Negotiating Silence.”
Be like Cary Grant, the strong, silent type, in negotiating the house sale. Do not become best friends with the seller; do not let the fact that the buyer is a single mother and you want to help her out get in the way of securing the best possible price. Do not let a low-ball offer cause you to respond with an above-listing price counteroffer. In fact, keep your emotions at bay during the entire showing and negotiating process. Hard as it may be to keep your mouth shut during the majority of home showings and price negotiations, use a technique called
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