All Forum Posts by: Pj Crescenzo

Also from the lending side... having those costs built in on a client that is light on reserves or tight on assets ... can SIGNIFICANTLY help the approval & there’s a lot of clients that fall into that bracket. That without the costs covered or some help on seller paid closing costs, they wouldn’t qualify. 

@Dan Maciejewski 100% agree with every bit of your post. We handle a lot of new construction purchases in which there is a lot of room to build in closing costs.  A lot of these homes were put under contract 4,5,6 months ago & we already are seeing values on comps at 10-15k what clients originally put the home under contract for. Plus the margin is available for the builders to cover while they are closing out entire neighborhoods at a time.  

Even in the private purchase market, we still have seen costs being built in even though it's a much tougher sell for the agent & for the client. Which I agree with. 

If a client loses 9-10 offers, but the 10th offer gets accepted & they save $8,000 - $9,000 out of pocket... Was it worth it?

It depends what the goal is for the client. To get their first offer accepted or who to come out of pocket with as little as possible. Are they looking for their dream home or are they a first time home buyer just looking to enter the game through the path of least financial resistance?

I think the purpose of my post was just to suggest that it IS possible to have a scenario where closing costs can be negotiated and we see it more often than not. 

This was also my first post on Bigger Pockets & knew it would be a conversation starter so mission accomplished  !! lol

With that said - I think it's about who your target market is, what the goals of the client are, & what market you are working in.

Negotiating closing costs is definitely not the best move for getting offers accepted quickly but it is a possibility & reality that is often not discussed. 

A lot of first time buyers seem to drop their jaw when they see the breakdown of closing costs & how much money can be needed out of pocket.... We recommend finding & partnering with the right agent, to get closing costs negotiated upfront. In most cases, there is always an option to build closing costs into the sales price as long as the property will appraise & this can save a first time home buyer THOUSANDS without having to come out of pocket & without impacting the monthly payment more than 10-15 dollars a month.