Conditions to make it easier for the seller

[Will B.]

I'm buying a property directly from the owner.  We are negotiating the price with no brokers, which I love.   This older gentleman is financially "set" and does not need the money.  I'm buying the apartment cash but I'm short 10 to 15K.    I want to present ideas to him so that my offer looks better.   So far I have the following:

1 – I will take the apartment “as is”. No need for him to do any repairs or cleanups. He can also leave any furniture behind and we will clean up.

2 – Flexibility to close/move in on date at his convenience.

What other suggestions should I make to make my offer better?

[Rick Albert]

There are so many things that it just depends. Maybe these questions can help get you where you want to be:

What is going to make the process so smooth that he can't resist? 

What are any pain points that he has that you can help with? 

At the end of the day, no one really cares about the price, they care about the net. What can you do to increase the dollar amount in his pocket? For example a quick close to lower his carrying costs, paying his closing fees, etc.

[Mohammed Rahman]

Hey @Will B. - talk to him and figure out what's important to him. 

Is it the final offer price? Or does he need some flexibility with closing timeline (like you mentioned). 

There's a few other things to think about too: 

1 - Possible owner financing if he wants to still get a stream of income into retirement at an attractive rate compared to the rest of the market (win/win scenario, you don't need to come up with as much cash, and he makes a little $ on the %) 

2 - Consider a post possession if he needs some time to move out but needs the cash up front for whatever reason 

3 - Leave all the furniture/junk in the property and you'll handle clean up etc. 

Many other random ideas come up, but the general gist of all of it is to highlight whatever is a priority to HIM and provide him that value.