Dealing With Lowball Offers

By: Texas Association of Realtors®

When your home is on the market, a prospective buyer may come at you with a lowball offer. It’s hard to not get offended because you love your house, but you should keep emotion out of it. Remember that this is a business transaction and there are many reasons a buyer might present such an offer.

Many parts of Texas are growing and there’s an increased need for housing. This attracts investors, who may throw offers at the wall just to see if they stick.

A low offer might also be to see how desperate you are to sell. When there’s a high amount of inventory, especially foreclosure properties, buyers feel that they have the upper hand. Counter with something that you see as reasonable and see how the buyer responds.

If you’re not happy with an offer, negotiate—even in a buyer’s market. How quickly you need to sell the property will obviously affect the amount you’re willing to accept, but no matter your motivation or situation, you should make a counteroffer. If a buyer really wants the house, he will buy it at a fair price. If not, you’re no worse for the wear.

The only time you might consider the outright rejection of a low offer is in a strong seller’s market. Even in those times, though, it’s advisable to counter—this will show that you’re willing to play ball, but only on realistic terms.

When you get a lowball offer, it benefits you to play the counteroffer game. Trust your Texas REALTOR® to help you with the deal. Not only will she help you arrive at a reasonable price when you’re listing the property, she’ll advise you throughout, and handle the negotiations of the deal, as well.