How does Team Diva Win a Multiple Offer in Seattle? We have a well-honed system for our Diva Dwellers to always be in the winning seat. It does take a lot of upfront work and preparation for our clients. But once we get through the process they often find themselves winning their ideal house in a neighborhood they love.
Earlier we wrote an article “How to Win a Multiple Offer in Seattle.” Start with the blog and then come back here for the Behind the Scenes (BTS) of how we actually approach this conversation with our Diva Dwellers. The blog goes into a huge amount of depth about how to choose a good listing broker, how to choose size, condition, and/or location, and so much more. Definitely start with the previous blog and come back here for the gritty reality of what it takes to make homeowning dreams come true in Seattle.
How Does Team Diva Prepare our Buyers to Win a Multiple Offer in Seattle in 2022?
Buckle up. This is going to be a down and dirty and very bossy blog. But we trust you can handle it. We are going to take you behind the scenes and share with you the email. And we will chat about the offer preparation we do with our clients when they are preparing to submit a winning multiple offer here in Seattle. Trust me you might not like what we have to say. Let’s get into how we win a multiple offer in Seattle.
The Criteria We Use to Win a Multiple Offer in Seattle in 2022
- Evaluate the Listing Broker’s List to Sale Price Averages and Best in Show
- Determine the Neighborhood Average List to Sale Price
- Title Report – Review and Waive
- Seller Disclosure Statement Review and Waive
- Review and Waive Paragraph W
- Conduct a Home Inspection or Review the Seller Procured Home Inspection Before Making an Offer
- Waiving Your Financing/ Appraisal Contingency
- Providing Proof of Funds
- Seller Rent Back
- Skip the Seller Love Letter
Let’s Dive in and see what we can do to make sure you win a multiple offer in Seattle.
Behind the Scenes On How We Win a Multiple Offer in Seattle
Winning a multiple offer in Seattle is all about reviewing everything about the house in advance. This way we can come up with the best terms to win the house. And by reviewing we are looking at how to evaluate a house Meaning, waiving just about everything. You need to do what it takes to get to know this house inside and out before submitting an offer. And on our side, we are looking at what the listing broker is capable of getting for a home AND seeing what the neighborhood can support. Meaning you can have a mediocre listing broker in a hot neighborhood. Or a hot listing broker in a mediocre-producing neighborhood. Both situations you have to take seriously. Now let’s have you win a multiple offer in Seattle.
Evaluate the Listing Broker’s List to Sale Price Averages and Best in Show
Every listing broker has a pattern. And if you follow it correctly you can accurately predict how well a house will do in a multiple offer. For instance, if a Listing Broker’s list-to-sale price at their highest is 110% and the house is listed at $900,000 then you can expect them to get about $990,000 for the home.
Pro-tip: This parameter is only accurate if there is stable inventory in the market.
Evaluate the Neighborhood Average List to Sale Price
There are certain areas in Ballard and Fremont that constantly go for 10-15% over asking. You can have a mediocre listing broker list a home and get an unexpected huge boost in the final sale price. Let’s say a home comes on the market at $900,000 in one of these hot neighborhoods you can expect the final price to be $1,030,500 and probably higher.
Pro-tip: Look at the demand rate for the neighborhood. This will tell you if you have an average or an extreme sellers market. Roy did a great video and blog explaining what the demand rate is in the market right now.
Review and Waive the Title Report
We send a separate email with the title report attached and how to review the report. Our team also gets you in touch with the title company. This way you can ask the experts any questions you have and see if they notice any red flags on the title.
Review and Waive the Seller Disclosure Statement
The seller is legally required to let you know what they know about the home. It is the buyers’ responsibility to review this statement to their satisfaction.
Do you have any questions? Let’s get them answered now by the inspector or the listing broker/seller.
Review and Waive Paragraph W
Paragraph W gives the buyer additional time to review all of the marketing remarks, seller disclosure statement, inspection, etc for accuracy AFTER the home goes into contract. Technically the buyer can use Paragraph X to get out of the contract. In a Multiple Offer situation – sellers and listing brokers want to see this contingency removed. You may want to consider changing the time frame from 10 days to 0 days to make your offer more competitive.
Conduct a Home Inspection or Review the Seller Procured Home Inspection Before Making an Offer
There are times when you may have the opportunity to conduct a “pre-inspection” and a sewer scope inspection on the home or the Seller may be providing “Seller Procured Inspections.” Although we always prefer you be allowed to conduct your own due diligence – in a COVID environment – this is harder to do.
In the case when you only have Seller Procured Inspections make sure to review completely, craft a list of clarifying questions for the seller or the inspector, look for any red flag issues, and in some cases, we can forward the inspection onto one of our inspectors to review as well. Either way – waiving this contingency will be the way to WIN but will also involve taking on some risk. Just remember no home inspection is perfect and all home buying involves some level of risk-taking.
Waiving Your Financing/ Appraisal Contingency
Sellers are looking for offers that are risk-free and guaranteed to close. This means if the appraisal comes back from the bank BELOW the purchase price you must be able to “close the gap” between your “purchase price” and the “appraised value.” Basically – if you are paying $950,000 for the home but it only appraises for $900,000 – you would have to make up the difference with cold hard cash. This is why Sellers prefer offers where buyers have waived this contingency. Make sure if you choose to waive – you have an extra $50,000 to $100,000 in cash reserves, beyond your initial down payment, to cover a low appraisal.
Provide Proof of Funds
This goes hand in hand with waiving your appraisal contingency. Even if you are waiving your financing, Sellers will want to see that you have the cash reserves to make up the difference in case of a low appraisal. No seller wants a deal to flip – even if they are holding the buyers’ Earnest Money. Make sure you have screenshots of your bank balances (with the account numbers blocked out) ready to submit with your offer.
Seller Rent Back
Some sellers need to sell their homes in order to buy their next properties. As a result, they cannot move out of the home right away and need to “Rent Back” the home from their buyers. Coldwell Banker Bain does have an addendum that protects the buyer and the home in case the seller does not vacate at the final date or damages the home.
Should I write a Love Letter for the Home to Win a Multiple Offer in Seattle?
This is a practice we used to use in the past to create an emotional tie for the Buyers and Sellers. Due to an increase in concern over Fair Housing Violations – the entire industry is moving away from this practice so we no longer have clients write letters directly to the seller.
Win a Multiple Offer in Seattle in 2022 Using the Team Diva Method
Before you get caught in the weeds of winning home in Seattle this year make sure you understand the process. And you know us. We have written a guide for everything.
Team Diva’s Seattle Home Buying Guides to Help You Win a House in Seattle
- Downloadable Guide to Win a Home in a Multiple Offer
- How to Buy a Home in Seattle
- Buying a Townhouse in Seattle
- Things to Know When Buying a Condo in Seattle
- What You Should Know About Buying a Vacation Home
- Winning a Multiple Offer in Seattle in 2022
- Advice From The Team to Win a Multiple Offer
- How to Win a Multiple Offer in a Hot Market
- Video Series – How to Buy a Home in Seattle
We are here to help. Our team understands that this process can take a year or two. And we are more than willing to give you a personalized plan to get the ball rolling. Feel free to contact us directly at thediva@teamedivarealestate.com or call/text 206-271-0264.
