<p>Great, Dharma! Time to get busy signing the contracts for the AL, and lining up movers and estate sales professionals.</p>
<p>I was one who urged a quick sale, but if someone is looking at the house today and someone on Saturday, why are you countering? Can’t you wait a couple of days and see if someone else is willing to go higher?</p>
<p>Agree. If you have multiple offers the realtor should ask for best and final from all 3. If each knows they are in a bidding war you will get a good deal. </p>
<p>Exactly. The realtor should announce she is taking bids on whatever day, maybe next Monday. </p>
<p>The point is, if you counteroffer, and the buyer accepts your offer, you have made a sale. You can’t then accept a higher offer from the person who looks at the house on Saturday and loves it.</p>
<p>Agree that I would do as JYM and CF recommend. Not sure why your realtor isn’t already thinking along those lines–she is supposed to be the expert and trying to get you the best offer in the shortest amount of time. </p>
<p>About the potential three bids - I see your reasoning and agree. I asked the realtor the same thing - I said could we give the woman who made a bid an answer on Saturday after all three parties have had a chance to bid? Her reply was, it is traditional to make a counter-offer within 24 hours. I deferred to her judgment.</p>
<p>Travelnut wrote me an excellent post to make specific pointed questions about all possible health care assists and add-ons. This morning I was at my mother’s and noticed how all three brochures we had were much, much more about ambience and quality of life and meals than health-care needs. My mother did not look great. Her medical needs are far from paramount, but she will need a lot of small hands-on aid; walking down long corridors, getting into shower, help getting into vehicles. She can dress herself and groom herself fine. <Maplewood is sending the nurse and tour director at 3 pm to my mother’s house. I am working hard to think of those small important questions to ask. If anyone can post such before 2:50 it would be a great help. How medications are managed is a big subject I will ask about. What happens, exactly, when a patient falls ill? Do they have to call me immediately or take necessary care-steps in house? Who picks up prescriptions? Who/what/when determines when a elder is sent to the hospital? Is there an escort who goes to the MD with the elder? Any similar important questions would be a great help, and I will keep thinking and making my list. You know what? I think I’m going to pick up the phone now and call my BSN sister in Reno. Shocking.</p>
<p>Yes there is a conventional time period in which the seller responds. What I’m familiar with is longer than 24 hours but this may vary. 245 is a good counter.</p>
<p>i dont agree with your realtor. There is no rush when there are other offers coming. What she should do is tell the other potential buyers to come sooner as you have an offer but have not countered.</p>
<p>Or, she should tell the people with the offer you have several other viewings and would they like to modify their offer? Your realtor should be doing this. You tell her, not the other way around.</p>
<p>If there are 3 offers, one might take it without an inspection. That would be ideal. Or would not ask for closing costs. Or one might be cash. Or they may offer above the listing price.</p>
<p>This happened to us on the other side. We put an offer in on our house and were in negotiations when our agent told us there was another offer and the sellers were asking us both to put in our top offer. So of course we ended up offering more than our original price. And got the house, but I’ve always been mad I never asked to see the other offer. What if we’d been played? 
</p>
<p>I dont believe they would have shown you the other offer. They probably were being truthful. You could have just as easily walked away.</p>
<p>When we last bought a house, we were in negotiations. At some point, we made a reasonable offer. The sellers countered again. We were annoyed-- we thought we’d made a good offer. So we countered with a bid $500 more than our last bid. They got the message and accepted that offer.</p>
<p>When you get an offer, the offer contract usually states x hours or days in which to respond. Most important, in this case, is that these should be qualified buyers- that their mortgage is pre-approved or they have the cash, whatever, and willing to close fast. No use signing for something if it won’t later go through. </p>
<p>True, LF, offers expire. But those lowballing buyers aren’t going to disappear in a puff of smoke if Dharma doesn’t counter in the next 24 hours. </p>
<p>I agree 24 hours is often for an unusual situation. I’m seeing online that 48 is more common, sometimes 72. A bidding war would be nice, sure. But we don’t have a crystal ball. The others could be lookey-loos or also lowball. My grandmother was a realtor and had an expression about getting too starry-eyed too fast. Would Dharma be happy with 240 or 245, a fast close? (Again, a qualified buyer.) Or need to take all the very real risks associated with holding out for 250?? </p>
<p>From our perches, we don’t know all the details- I’d be asking the agent what the contract response time was, what this contract states (the conditions,) what she knows about the current prospective buyers and the other visitors, etc. Ie, get a little context.</p>
<p>What do the comps look like??? I’d say if you got a 220 offer in three days on a 250 list, you should wait to see what the others may offer. 220 definitely sounds like a lowball.</p>
<p>What are comps? There is only the 220 offer. the other two are only viewing. the realtor said everyone lowballs, it’s awful. </p>
<p>Comps should have been discussed when she first came over to talk about pricing the house. It’s comparisons or or comparables- ie, what other similar homes sold for. It’s one way they set a reasonable price, to begin with. (It also factors in mortgage approvals- banks generally won’t approve a mortgage for an amount so much higher than comps suggest.)</p>
<p>No question, 220 is a lowball and too low. But we don’t know what this is about- a seller always needs to know what the conditions and contingencies are.
<a href=“http://www.realtor.com/advice/breaking-down-the-buyers-offer/”>http://www.realtor.com/advice/breaking-down-the-buyers-offer/</a></p>
<p>Of course people can start lower than the list price. It’s the nature of the game. Then comes the back and forth. The bottom line is: what does the seller want and need. We know you need fast, a secure sale, and a certain amount of money. All those weigh toward your decision. Sometimes, the seller has some give, other times, not. </p>
<p>In general, you always want to get the offer contract details from the agent. With each offer, get the full details and ask what the net to your mother is. None of us is suggesting 220 is an acceptable offer. </p>
<p>“Everyone” doesn’t lowball. Some people lowball. Lowballing is not awful. It’s a negotiating technique.</p>
<p>LF wants to know what the prices were for other houses similar to your mothers that sold recently-- the comparables, or “comps.” That tells you what you can expect as a final price for your mother’s house.</p>
<p>I think it was CD who noted it. Your agent knows. Agree, it’s not “awful.” It’s the way it is. Likely, your agent set the 250 price, believing it was reasonable to expect. But all sorts of things factor in what offers you actually get. Real estate is part speculative, part based on what else happened with similar homes. Keep your goals in mind. And be informed.</p>
<p>Depending on what this current offer says, you may be able to delay the counter. If you have only a short period to respond, IMO, 245 is fine, nearly your full price. </p>
<p>Maybe they will “counter your counter.” Ie, respond with a new offer less than 245. Then you react to that.
But you have to know the rest of the story- are they asking for closing costs, a generous time to finalize, other contingencies, etc. You can’t decide in the dark, just based on final sales price. </p>
<p>^^^Yes, yes, yes on other aspects to the offer. An offer of $220 and then the seller wants you to pay the closing costs is a different story than someone who offers $220, waives inspection, and will pay own closing costs.</p>