When an Offer is Made
Receiving an offer on your property is the culmination of proper preparation and effective marketing. Additionally, at this juncture, you reap the benefits of hiring us as your Realtors.
When we receive an offer on your behalf, there are a myriad of steps which we follow to verify that the offer is valid. The law dictates that we disclose all offers to you, even after a contract has been ratified. Naturally, this will be the first thing we will do after downloading the offer from our fax machine or fax to email.
Before we can advise you on whether to accept the offer or not, we will take certain precautions on your behalf.
- We will ascertain that your property is identified correctly and that the terms of the purchase are clearly disclosed.
- We will carefully study the contract and ascertain that all fields are completed and review it in case any additions/addendums were submitted with the offer. We will list all pertinent data in matrix form for you to study.
- We will ensure that necessary addenda – e.g. Lead-Based Paint Disclosure, Disclaimer Statements are attached.
- We will check that all necessary signatures and initials are properly affixed to the document.
- We will study the Lender’s letter for assurance that the lender is licensed to do business in Virginia. We will contact the Loan Officer to ensure that the purchaser has the financial capacity to purchase your home as stated in the Contract.
- In the case of a cash sale, we will verify financial capability with banks and/or depositories as allowed.
- We may verify the purchaser’s employment and credit score, if permitted.
- We will do a timely check on the market when the offer is received, which can help you decide on what is best for you at that time.
- Once we have completed our review, we may suggest alternatives to improve your position. We may advise that you to make a counteroffer to the purchaser’s offer.
Counteroffers
A counteroffer can constructed in a variety of ways – whether paying points to reduce a purchaser’s monthly payments, paying future condo fees, granting/denying a post-settlement occupancy and much more. Each situation and transaction is unique. We will take the time to devise a strategy and spend plenty of time with you so that you are comfortable with the course of action which is finally chosen.
Once you have decided on your course of action, we will assist you in signing and initialing the contract. Then the contract will be delivered to the Selling Agent who will review the results with his/her client. These steps can continue until you and the purchaser agree on a Sales Price and terms of the sale, or will be terminated when one or both parties to the contract cannot agree on the terms.
If you and the Buyers agree on terms, we will designate your home as Under Contract on the multiple listing service. Realtors will stop showing your home to prospective buyers.
After a Contract has been Ratified
After a Contract has been ratified, we will still be hard at work to ensure that all the terms of the contract are satisfied. We will monitor such things as the pest inspection, home inspection, assist you in delivering HOA or Condo docs (if necessary). In essence, we will escort your contract through the process from ratification through title search to settlement.
Settlement
One or both of us will accompany you to Settlement. Should any questions arise there, we will represent/advise you. Once settlement has been completed, we hope that we will stay in touch with you for years to come. Our business is built on our relationships with our clients. We’ll do our best to stay in touch with you. If you need the services of a good Realtor or know someone looking for top service, we hope to hear from you.
Questions
If you have any questions about our procedures or during any transactions, please feel free to contact us. You can reach Jay at 703-795-5112, Nita at 703-408-6687, or by e-mail at JayandNita@JayandNitaElder.com
