Understanding Counteroffers
So you’ve decided to take the plunge and put in an offer for a new home in Calgary. Congratulations! You have taken the first step towards homeownership. Now comes the time for nail biting as you wait for your offer to be accepted, rejected or to receive a counter offer. Normally you’ll hear back very quickly one way or the other and hopefully things will be smooth and your offer will be accepted as is.
The Counteroffer
A counter offer will be presented when the home seller agrees with the offer except for certain particulars. Some of the most common reasons for a counter offer include the following:
- Changing the possession or closing date.
- Asking for a higher price.
- Modifying time frame contingencies.
- Removing personal property from the offer.
- Asking for an increase in the money deposit.
When you first get back a counteroffer you may be slightly disappointed to hear that your offer didn’t get accepted at face value. What you need to understand, however, is that this is part of the selling process and is totally expected. Your next move is to decide what you want to do with the counteroffer. Do you want to accept it, reject it altogether or continue to negotiate?
Your Calgary real estate agent will be able to guide you and give you recommendations. He can bring another offer to the table and work towards getting you the best deal possible.
It is important to not think too long and hard about a counteroffer since the seller still has the chance to accept any other offers that come forward. Usually once an offer has been submitted and a counteroffer has been returned it is time to act with speed. Although you are making a big decision, you’ll have to sit back and examine all of your options and make a logical decision fairly quickly. In some cases it’s easy when the counteroffer doesn’t stray too far from the original.
Usually the biggest problem to be dealt with is an increase in price when the buyers aren’t sure whether they can afford the extra being asked for. At this stage of the game it’s time to do some fast number crunching and come up with a yes or no answer. You can always counter offer with a lower amount and then cross your fingers again for a positive response. Hopefully, at the end of the negotiations, you’ll be walking away proudly with your new home in Calgary.
