By Julia Robertson, February 19, 2018
The second week of January an adorable, updated, well maintained ranch, with a great backyard comes up for sell in Lents, Southeast Portland. Buyers were lining up for this one- and thats exactly what they did- 22 offers in, one lucky buyer, and closed in 30 days. For whatever reason the song “Anything you can do I can do better” comes to mind. 22 buyers and their agents were singing that tune for nearly a week before the seller accepted an offer on this listing. We started receiving offers within 24 hours and kept the home open to show for a least a week, as requested by the seller. Several agents called and adjusted their final offer to be more competitive in the final hours. So what wins the deal in a 22 offer situation? If I’m a seller, how do I get 22 offers and sell my house for $61k over listed price? Here’s the scoop…
If you’re a buyer: When your agent calls and asks about 1)deadline/timeline for offers in 2)terms important to seller 3)what is it going to take to get this- chances are, if you write your offer with those details, you’ll be in the running. Communication is key (The buyers agent on this deal negotiated repairs while she was getting a tattoo. A tattoo! Thats painful and communicative at the same time. I’m in awe 
) When there are multiple offers, you can suspect one or more offers are above listed price. Cash is not king- Price is king. Don’t come in with a lowball cash offer expecting to win(unless this is a really unique non-financeable property). Lenders are closing in 28 days or more and its hard to get pre-approved. Buyers that are qualified are solid buyers. If you are cash you need to come in strong in all your other terms as well. Offer to cover gap on an appraisal & free rent back. Yes, this buyer offered that & with the highest offer it was the golden goose.
If you’re a seller: Do your checklist of deferred maintenance. If you have a “honey do” list for days… spend days doing it. In the long run it will pay off. When I do an initial walk through with sellers, we make a pre-listing checklist. There is a plan in place for any repairs that need to be made, yard work, furniture staging, professional photography, print and social media marketing, open house, showings, and what to expect through the process. Timing is important and so is pricing. There is a strategy to sell your home for the highest price possible. Over pricing your home to begin with could cost you 10-20k in your final sales price. I’m pretty sure the Belmont goats were the winning factor here… but maybe it was just a cute house at the right time with the right buyers :-).
If you are curious what your home is worth and how much you could sell it for, visit realestatebyjuliarobertson.com
JULIA ROBERTSON | BROKER LICENSED IN OREGON & WASHINGTON
541-505-1111 | julia@livingroomre.com
Julia Robertson
WA Designated Managing Broker | Earth Advantage | WA, OR, UT
During a two-plus decade career in real estate, Julia has approached her job with one overarching goal in mind: to help people get from where they are, to where they want to be...
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- T: 541-505-1111
- julia@rebyjulia.com
