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Right now, Philadelphia is considered a seller’s market. In layman terms, this means that the current market is advantageous to sellers because there are not a lot of homes for sale, but a lot of people who want to buy. When this happens, it creates a highly competitive environment for buyers who often find themselves in bidding wars for the homes that they want to purchase. This means that in some cases sellers are able to choose from multiple offers on their property and then select the strongest one. With this being said, as a buyer, it’s very important to make a strong offer in order to give yourself the highest chance of having your offer accepted. These ten tips will give you the best shot at putting together a strong offer and getting it accepted:

1. If you can, Pay With Cash

You’ve heard the saying “cash is king”. Well when making an offer on a home… cash is definitely king. The reason why sellers like cash offers so much is because they are much less likely to fall through before settlement. Additionally, when the deal is all cash, you can usually settle more quickly, which is especially attractive if the seller is in a rush to sell. When a mortgage is involved, the process can take much longer because it takes time for the lender to approve and process the loan.

2. If you Can’t Pay Cash, Get a Pre Approval

If you’re like most people, you won’t have enough cash to buy a property outright. In this case you will need to get a mortgage. Before you get a mortgage, you should get a pre-approval too see what you can afford. A pre-approval is an absolute must have when submitting an offer, because it shows the seller that you are a serious buyer who has the ability to qualify for a mortgage. If you don’t have a pre-approval, seller’s won’t take your offer seriously because they won’t know if you can afford to purchase the home or not.

3. Make The Best Priced Offer

This may seem obvious, but this detail is often overlooked by buyers who are making an offer on the house. The easiest way to get your offer accepted is to give the seller exactly what they want or more. Most buyers will come in with an offer below asking price and then feel let down when they lose the house to a higher bid. If you are in a situation where there are likely to be multiple offers on a property, offering asking price or even above will make your offer stand out among the rest.

4. Put Down A Large Earnest Money Deposit

If you have some money saved up in the bank, you should consider putting down a large earnest money deposit to show the seller that you a serious. The typical earnest money deposit is around 2% of the offer price, but if you are serious about getting your offer accepted, you should consider putting down substantially more up front.

5. Pay For Your Own Closing Costs

Many buyers will ask for something called a “seller’s assist” when putting in an offer to buy a house. This is especially common for first time home buyers who don’t have a ton of money to put down on a house. The “seller’s assist” asks that the seller help to pay a portion of the buyer’s closing costs. This is a great tool for buyers who don’t want to break the bank, however, if you are in a competitive bidding situation, asking for a seller’s assist can make your offer less appealing.

6. Have a Flexible Settlement Timeline

If you have a flexible timeframe for moving, let the seller know that you are willing to accommodate their timeline. Depending on who the seller is, this could mean giving them more or less time before settlement.

Certain neighborhoods in Philadelphia are currently home to many properties that are being bought by investors, fixed up, and flipped for a profit. If you’re putting in an offer on a renovated or new construction property that is vacant, it is likely hat the investor wants to sell the property as fast as possible. With this being said, moving the settlement timeline up to be as fast as possible is usually appealing this situation.

On the other hand, some areas are more likely to have homes listed by families who are trying to find a new home to live in. In this situation, agreeing to extend settlement to give the sellers time to find a new home could make your offer stronger than others.

7. Don't Add a lot of contingencies

When putting in an offer, you have the option to add contingencies to protect yourself from certain scenarios. The most common contingencies are the inspection contingency and the mortgage contingency. These contingencies essentially allow you to back out of purchasing a home if you find something that you don’t like in the inspection report, or if you are unable to secure a mortgage loan. Sellers accept offers that they feel have the highest likelihood of being seen through to completion, with the least amount of headache. The more contingencies that you add to your offer, the more headaches you create for a seller, the less appealing your offer is.

8. Add An Escalation Clause

If you don’t want to start by putting in your highest offer, you can have your agent add an escalation clause to your offer which will essentially tell the seller that you are willing to bid above any other buyer who submits an offer up to a certain price limit. For example, you may put in an offer at 300K, but add an escalation clause that says you are willing to go $1000 higher than any offer that the seller receives up to a purchase price of 310k. This can strengthen you offer if you find yourself bidding against other buyers.

9. Write A Letter To The Seller

In certain situations, it may help to appeal to the sellers emotions. If you know that the seller has lived in their home for a long time, they will usually have a certain amount of attachment to the property, and will probably want to sell the home to a buyer who will take care of it. Writing a letter that tells the seller why you love their home, the area, and connecting with them on an emotional level can help give you the edge over another buyer.

10. Work With A Great Real Estate Agent

Believe it or not, sometimes the agent that you are working with can impact whether or not your offer gets accepted. Agents with a good reputation in the real estate community that you are shopping in can be a huge asset to you when putting in an offer. If the seller’s listing agent has worked with your agent before and knows that he/she is competent and easy to work with, they may be more likely to accept your offer. On the other hand, if you are working with an agent who has created a bad reputation for themselves, the listing agent may be less enthusiastic to work on a deal with your agent.

A great agent will also help to advise you on how to make your offer as strong as possible in any given situation.