The way you present the sales offer sets the tone for many things-how it will be accepted, whether the sellers trust that you know what you are doing, whether the other agent wants to work with you, and whether you are representing your buyers best interests. Negotiating skills are an important part of our business and it is good not to forget them in our haste to get the offer presented. Remember the basics:
Involve the Other Agent
The agent representing the seller knows them best. Make him/her your friend and ally. Call the agent with your buyers present. What you want to do is let the other agent know that your clients are serious and waiting to hear an answer, and at the same time you want to express to the other agent that you are looking forward to working with him/her; that you are sure that this is going to be a good experience for all the parties. You have set the right tone from the first phone call. The best presentation is by you in front of the sellers. The other agent will have to set up the appointment.
Many times the agent representing the seller will do the presenting for you. In that case, you should use a somewhat different strategy in how you present. Take a picture of the family or couple or person that you are representing and brief sheet on their background-where husband works, what wife does, the ages of the children (if any), and their interests. You want to have the other agent get to "know" these people before presenting their offer.
When the other agent requires that he/she present the offer to the sellers, you make sure you present the offer to him/her. By that I mean you give a quick presentation in person (don't just drop off your offer-remember, you are representing your buyer to the best of your abilities, not trying to save time) of all the positives in the offer. Give the listing agent a copy of the deposit check and see if he/she has any questions regarding the offer. Give the agent a number where you can be reached should there be questions when the offer is being presented to the seller. Try to get a time when the offer is being presented so that you can keep your buyers informed.
Involve the Seller
Hopefully you will be able to present your offer in person to the seller. In that event, try to control the situation by first recommending a table to sit at and have the seller sit directly across from you so that you can focus on him/her. Having one seller on one side of you and another on the other side is distracting to say the least and you tend to focus on one more than the other. That could have a negative effect on your offer.
Next, thank the seller for having their home available for showing, or having it be in lovely condition, or something positive that you can think of. Then briefly tell the seller and agent about your buyers. Don't go into too much detail, but make the buyers into people; e.g., "my buyers are wanting a larger home for their growing family-they have a boy 12 and a girl 8. They have looked for a time and find that your home would be terrific with the schools close by and the "feel" of the neighborhood. John works for XYZ Company, and Sally works part-time for the city library. They have been pre-qualified with X lender."
Don't give copies of your offer to the other agent or seller. They will be reading it when you are presenting. If asked for the copies, say that you will provide copies after you go over the important points. When presenting your offer, after each point (and start with the price) ask a question. Why start with price? That's what the sellers are waiting to hear. Give it to them. It will give them a little time to accept it. You can present your price like this, "my buyers are offering $120,000 for your property. They will be putting down $30,000, and are going to apply for a loan for the balance, giving you all cash for your property. Are you wanting to receive all cash for your property?" When they answer you, write it down on a piece of paper. You want them to know that whatever they answer is important. Then go on with your presentation with more questions that illicit "yeses," such as, "they will be applying for the loan immediately and we expect full loan approval by July 1 (make it an explicit date!). Is that satisfactory?" Again, when they respond, write it down. Go on, "their offer asks for a closing date of August 15 (again, have an explicit date rather than number of days). Will that work with your plans?" You get the picture, ask questions during your presentation and write down the responses.
Sit back and listen
After you have presented your offer. Give a copy to the listing agent and one to the seller. Then sit back and be quiet. Let them talk. As they talk, make notes, don't argue. If asked a question, answer briefly. You want them to express all their objections, if they have any here. Let them wind down, and then point out the positives of your offer all over again.
Practice
To build good negotiating skills takes some practice. Use your spouse and friends and practice presenting offers. Listen to what your friends say and it will help you improve your skills. The more you practice, the better you will be.
Presenting offers in this way involves all parties and gives you much more to go on should there be a counter offer. And, if so, present your counter the same way to your buyers. Good negotiating skills are simply good people skills. Make everyone involved important. Everyone is a winner that way-the seller sells his home, the buyer buys a new home, the listing agents gets paid, and so do you.
