When sellers receive offers from two or more potential buyers, they need a reason to choose one over another. A buyer who can pay in cash won’t have to get approved for a mortgage, so a seller may choose a cash offer because it’s a sure thing. If you can’t pay cash, there are other ways to make your offer appealing and get the keys to your dream home.
Show That Your Finances are in Order
Being preapproved for a mortgage is helpful, but that doesn’t necessarily mean you’ll get final approval for a home loan. Your lender will check your credit again shortly before closing to find out if your circumstances have changed. The lender may deny your mortgage application if you no longer meet its requirements. A seller may feel more comfortable accepting an offer from a cash buyer than accepting an offer that’s contingent on mortgage approval.
Getting underwritten before you make a bid may help you get the house you want. The underwriting process is more complex and time consuming than preapproval, but it can give the seller additional confidence that you will be able to close without any financing problems.
Find Out What the Seller Wants
Your agent can speak with the listing agent to find out what is important to the seller. If you can provide what the seller is looking for, that may help you get the house if a cash buyer can’t offer the same.
The seller may be focused on getting the asking price, or as close to it as possible. Cash buyers often request price reductions because a seller doesn’t have to worry about mortgage approval. If you’re willing to pay the full list price, or even a little more, that may cause the seller to accept your bid rather than a cash offer.
Maybe the seller wants to close quickly. If you’re able to move soon and you expedite the process by submitting necessary paperwork early and scheduling the appraisal and inspection as soon as possible, that may make your offer attractive to the seller.
Contingencies can delay a transaction or even cause it to collapse entirely. If you limit the number of repairs and other things you ask for, the seller may accept your offer.
Appeal to the Seller’s Emotions
If a seller is torn between two competing offers, feelings may be the deciding factor. A personal letter explaining what you love about the house, telling a bit about you and your family, or even describing how you envision your lives in the home, may be enough to sway the seller.
