Offers & Negotiation
The best offer is not always the highest number. When you are selling, the offer most likely to actually close — on your timeline, with the fewest ways to fall apart — is usually worth more than a bigger price with shaky financing and a long list of conditions. Reading offers well means weighing price against the terms behind it, and that is where an experienced agent protects your bottom line.
What should you look at besides price?
Look at the whole offer: the financing (cash or mortgage, and how strong the pre-approval is), the size of the deposit, which contingencies the buyer keeps (inspection, financing, appraisal, sale-of-home), and the proposed dates. A slightly lower offer from a well-qualified buyer with a clean, fast timeline can be far more valuable than a high offer that is likely to renegotiate or collapse.
What are contingencies, and why do they matter?
Contingencies are conditions that let a buyer back out and recover their deposit — for inspection results, financing, or a low appraisal. They are normal and reasonable, but each one is a door the deal can exit through. Part of evaluating offers is understanding which contingencies a buyer is keeping and how long each lasts. Fewer, shorter contingencies mean more certainty for you.
How do you handle multiple offers?
When more than one buyer is interested, you have real leverage — but it has to be handled fairly and strategically. Depending on the situation, that might mean countering the strongest offer, or inviting everyone to submit their best and final. The aim is to convert interest into the strongest possible terms, not just the biggest number, while keeping qualified buyers engaged rather than scaring them off.
How do you negotiate after the inspection?
Even after you accept an offer, negotiation is not always over. If the buyer's inspection turns up issues, they may ask for repairs, a credit, or a price adjustment. You can agree, offer a credit instead of doing the work, hold firm, or meet in the middle — the right move depends on the finding, the market, and how solid the rest of the deal is. Keeping emotion out of this stage is where a steady agent earns their fee.
Strong offers start with strong positioning. The way a home is priced, prepared, and marketed shapes the quality of the offers you get. See preparing your home and our marketing approach.
Once you accept, the deal moves into closing — see the seller's closing process for what happens next.
Have an offer to review?
We will break down every offer term by term and negotiate hard on your behalf — so you accept with full confidence.
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