Why Sellers Make Full Price Counter Offers on Denton County Homes

 

In a seller’s market many times a seller of will write their counter offer at the full list price. That's because the seller knows if one buyer won't come up to their asking price another one probably will agree to pay full price. But many times a seller may also issue a counter offer at full price in a buyer’s market even though surrounding homes may sell at less than asking price, some of these homes are worth full price if the home is priced properly in the first place based upon comparable sales. 

Why Sellers Counter Offer at Full Price ·         Sellers Can Be Irrational, Hardhead and/or Greedy Many sellers think their home is worth much more than it is actually worth. As further evidence, try counting the number of listings in MLS system that sell at their original listed price. You'll find a high percentage of homes that will have had at least one price reduction. ·         Sometimes Buyers Will Actually Accept a Full Price Counter Offer listing Agents know that a buyer who puts down a good size earnest money deposit and takes the time to write an offer probably wants to buy the house. Buyers have a way of letting their emotions take over and fall in love with the home. The buyers may initially offer less so the buyer can later say to themselves that they tried to get the home for less.  ·         Sellers Generally Expect Buyers to Counter Their Counter Offers Most sellers know that it is considered risky to issue a full price counter offer to the buyer. They know they are taking the chance the buyer may walk away from the home.  But like buyers who will offer less than they expect to pay, sellers will also try to get more than the price they are actually willing to accept. ·         Sometimes Sellers Have a Change Their Minds Buyer’s remorse doesn't always set in upon signing a listing agreement to out their home on the market. It’s not until an offer is received, do some sellers start to consider the fact that they are actually moving. When the purchase offer is presented it is often when reality sets in for the sellers. They may feel reluctant to let their home go any price, much less at the offer price, so many times they issue a counter offer in hopes the buyer will walk away. Rather than tell friends they had cold feet, sellers can say, “the buyer wouldn't pay our price." ·         The Home Wasn't On the Market Long Enough It's not unreasonable for sellers to reject purchase offer by writing a counter offer for full price when the home has been listed for less than 30 days. Generally, the first offer received is typically the best offer they will receive, but sometimes sellers feel if they hold out for a few more weeks, somebody else will offer full price. In reality this is rarely the case. ·         Was The Home Priced Right If the home is priced right at the beginning of the listing it will sell. Sellers won't have to later ask “why isn’t my home selling” because they will get a lot of buyer showings. When the interest level is high, generally the home is priced according to market comparables. If it's the lowest-price home among the competition in the neighborhood, sometimes buyers will fight over it. ·         Bad Listing Advice Some listing agents act as though the home is theirs and not their sellers. These agents may feel it's a personal insult to them if a buyer offers less, so they will encourage the seller to make a full-price counter offer which may not be in the best interest of their clients. The agent might also have a buyer on the side, waiting for the seller to reduce their sales price. This type of offer would give the agent both sides of the commission. So, the agent may do whatever it takes to make the first buyer disappear. It's not ethical, and it's not legal, but it sometimes happens in the real world. Buyers' Response to Full-Price Counter Offers Consider all of the above reasons first and try to figure out which kind of circumstance applies to your situation. But always make a counter offer. You have nothing to lose and everything to gain. Continue negotiating until one side gives up. Even if the seller does not respond to your counter offer, you are always free to write another offer or resubmit your counter offer. In one circumstance the buyers made a lowball offer then the sellers wrote a full price counter offer. The buyers could not afford to pay full price for the home and felt the seller did not want to really sell. However, their buyer's agent suspected the seller really wanted to sell the home. The result, the buyers came up in price by a few thousand on the second counter offer. The sellers accepted the offer, still below list, the transaction closed and everyone got what they wanted.