CHAPTER 11
NEGOTIATING ON YOUR OWN When you decide to sell your home by yourself, without the mediation of an agent, you might be able to save on the commissions you would have to pay the agent. However, the flip side of that coin is that you have to handle negotiating with the buyers, which is likely a rather unfamiliar job for you. You must thoroughly understand everything you can about successful negotiation—and what could happen if you do not handle it properly. To learn how to negotiate, you must know what will appeal to a buyer and what will put one off. It is not only about working on the buyer’s psychology, though; it is also about knowing what is actually happening in the market. You need to approach the task of negotiation in a professional manner. Handling multiple offers is not going to be so simple as just picking the highest dollar offer. In fact, multiple offers might backfire sometimes, causing you to lose all the offers, as most buyers do not like to get entangled in bidding wars. In this regard, agents can handle the process much better, using their experience to conduct the competition in a tactful way. Some of the basic good negotiation include setting a clear timeline beforehand, including when the offers are due, when they will be reviewed, and when the buyers will get their response. The agents usually
use a spreadsheet to handle these aspects, which will help systematically compare all the offers. Negotiation must also take into account how the buyer is willing to pay. For instance, when the buyer comes out with a cash offer or
a no option period, lowering the offer price will be attractive to that
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