Lehigh Valley Real Estate - Tips 4 Homeowners, Buyers & Agents

Moriah's opinion on what Buyers in the Lehigh Valley (Lehigh and Northampton County), PA area should consider when making an offer on a home.

1) YOU ARE THE BOSS! YES, Buyer's everywhere....IF it does not feel right to you.  KEEP ASKING QUESTIONS of your Real Estate Agent UNTIL you get it and then ask more questions until it is clearly understood. REMEMBER THE REAL ESTATE AGENT IS WORKING FOR....YOU!

2) The offer you make on a home has to do with much more than PRICE.  ALL TERMS of the agreement need to be considered.  CAREFULLY! READ IT ONCE....NO READ IT TWICE and then think about the effect it will have on you if the other party accepts it OR does not accept it!

3) BUYER'S Do not make an offer WITHOUT your Agent providing you with "Comps" on what the last few properties sold for! This will compare recently sold homes with the home you want.  Any good BUYER'S AGENT should be doing everything they can to show you why you should not have to offer full listing price.  If there is no other Buyer's making an offer...there is no reason to offer full price at FIRST.  Your highest and best offer can wait for negotiations to start with the seller.  If you are advised there are other offers on the table,  THEN DO NOT MESS AROUND! GIVE YOUR HIGHEST AND BEST OFFER!

4) DO put down as much money as you can for a deposit.  We are not purchasing shoes for $19.99 - You are asking the Seller to purchase their home and take their home off the market for 3 weeks or more until all other conditions are met.  The more money you put down the more you can be trusted, since this makes it less likely you will just walk away from the deposit. KEEPS YOU HONEST.  Best part, is if all conditions of your offer can not be met, then you get your money back!   

5)Unless you are an investor - GET A HOME INSPECTION, Termite, Central Air tested, well water and septic tested and make the offer conditioned on this! But, make sure you choose option 2.  Which keeps you HONEST! This means that no matter what the results say on your inspections that you must  negotiate with the seller before walking away.  The point is buying the home right?  But, you do not want to get stuck with buying a home that is a "lemon" or has a major mechanical situation when you made your offer conditioned on the fact that all major mechanic issues where in working order. THERE ARE other options for testing like Radon, Lead-based Paint issues etc. everyone feels different about these issues. By the way: Option 1 means you can walk away from purchasing the home no matter what the results of your tests say.

6) If you are getting a Mortgage - Ask for Mortgage Contingency! supply a Pre-qualification letter with your offer.  Also, there is no reason why it should take longer then 20 to 21 days for a Mortgage Approval from the day your offer get's accepted.  WORK WITH SOMEONE you can trust and that works FAST! Click Here for the BEST Mortgage Consultant in the Lehigh Valley Area. 

YOU SHOULD BE WORKING WITH A REAL ESTATE AGENT THAT TELLS YOU THEY WILL BE PROVIDING YOU WITH THE BELOW SERVICES...BUT, If you have no clue...ASK THEM TO DO THE FOLLOWING!

7) REQUEST that your Real Estate Agent calls you with daily updates during your home negotiations with the Seller.  There is no reason to go through a day without speaking with your agent until your offer gets DECLINED or gets accepted.

8) REQUEST before you make your offer for your Real Estate Agent to call the Seller's Agent (WHICH BETTER NOT BE YOUR AGENT!!!!!) That you are interested in making an offer, are there any offers on the table or coming in? Let them know when the offer will be hand delivered with the deposit check! Ask if there are any special Terms in the Agreement that the Seller's are looking for?  Example: Expected or Request Settlement time? This is usually an easy way to get on the seller's "good side".

This should not be taken as everything to consider when making an offer...only some of the most important asspects that I most often see that others are just not having done or doing as part of their offer.  I feel if no one tells you anything about making an offer...these would be the TOP areas you should consider.

I hope this helps you!  PLEASE REPORT TYPOS