Today, we’ll cover strategies on how you can win a bidding war and make your offer desirable.

Get pre-approved. If you’re a buyer putting in an offer on a home, you should immediately get pre-approved. Think about it. Let’s say you’re a seller and you have two bids around the same price. One candidate is pre-approved, the other is not. Who are you more likely to choose in that situation?

Have a good down payment. When you go to finance a home, many places allow you to finance with as little as zero percent down. However, there is also a deposit to secure a property and take the listing off the market. A good deposit could be $5,000 or $10,000, depending on whatever you can afford to part with while the house is under contract. You either get the deposit back or it is applied to your future purchase. The seller looks at your deposit to see how serious you are about actually buying. The more money you put down, the more serious you appear to the seller.

Have all your paperwork in order. You still need to sign a purchase of sales agreement and get pre-approved when giving an offer. It’s a crucial time. Other people could be bidding as well! You want to make sure your Realtor has your paperwork ready to send over to the seller.

Forget about lowball offers. Especially with a hot property, this is not the time to miss out on an opportunity. Don’t insult the seller! Make an educated offer by sitting down with your agent and comparing the listing with other homes in the area that have sold.

Keep the contingencies reasonable. You want to find out from the seller what their time frame is. Are they looking to move quickly? This information could help you.

There are many other ways that we can help you win the home you want during a bidding war. If you have any questions on this or anything else, please reach out to us. We'd be happy to help you!