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We Just Made an Offer on our First Home!!

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Thanks for all of the dust everyone :-)

Haha Steel - no - it is not a fixer upper - most of the homes in our city are really, really old so most of them need new plumbing, electrical, floors, etc and we just weren''t prepared to do that.

Haven''t heard anything yet
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Ooooh it''s GORGEOUS! Fingers crossed you get it! Keep us posted!
 
WOW!!!! I love that back splash! The house is super cute, what a score!
 
Oh My Gosh! That seals it for me, I am moving to Canada! Can I have one just like it?
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Good luck! It''s gorgeous!
 
Dusting like crazy - I hope you get the house!!
 
Thanks everyone!

So they signed the offer back to us and only came down 5K. Basically, the issue is that the house has only been on the market 2 days and the open house is this weekend. So because they''ve only had two showings (us being one) in the 2 days and already have an offer, they are probably feeling confident that there are more people like us out there.

They might be right, but from what we''ve seen, at this price point there hasn''t been many that have moved quickly so you never know.

It is confusing - the open house can go in either direction - either they get no interest and are more tempted by our offer or they get a lot and ours isn''t so hot anymore...

Anyways, just giving you guys an update :-) Thanks for the dust!
 
Date: 2/7/2009 12:06:32 AM
Author: october2008bride
Thanks everyone!

So they signed the offer back to us and only came down 5K.
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Hi,
You didn't say how much lower than their asking price you offered, but one thing you can do to make your offer more tempting is do a quick close. We did that with our last house and basically, it meant that we closed earlier than 30 days, before the seller had to make the next mortgage payment and that saved them quite a bit of money. There were two other offers and one of the reasons the sellers picked us was because of that.
 
OMG, its gorgeous!!!!!! I LOVE it!!!! Everything is top-notch. I hope you get this house, October!!! Fingers crossed for you!!!!!
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That''s a bummer, but MC is right. People don''t think about their carrying costs when selling. They''re so set on the big number that they forget about the out-of-pocket expenses. I''m still sending dust your way!
 
Oh the potential house is GORGEOUS, October!

I''m crossing my fingers for you. I know how anxious this time can be, we put offers in on three places before we ended up in our house. My best advice is not to budge on your bottom line, because in the end it will all work out and you''ll end up in the right home. We refused to spend more than we thought a house was worth, and it totally worked out in the end for us.

GOOD LUCK!!!!
 
I''m sorry it was not better news.

If you are happy to have this plan backfire and lose the house this is what I would do...

Lets say your offer is $250,000 and the asking price is $275,000.

I would let them know that your offer of $250k is valid until Friday (next week). On Friday the offer goes down to $245k and will remain on the table for a further week when it will go down to $240k until the next Friday when the offer will be withdrawn and no further offer made.

If the seller feels that they might get more, they should realise that a bird in the hand is better than one in the bush (so to speak). Remember that every month they do not sell they are still paying their mortgage payment (eg. 1k). So if they want to achieve $275k, every month they wait to sell (if they do not accept your offer) then they might as well take the cost of their mortgage payment off the asking price every month they remain unsold. Every week they own that house it is costing them money - they should remember that.

What do you think?
 
Late to this thread, but that''s a great house! Good luck, hopefully the open house won''t go well.
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We recently bought a house and I was absolutely *crushed* when we didn''t get the first house we made an offer on. I was in love with it, I could see me rocking babies to sleep in it, and I just thought it was *the* house for us. But, they didn''t budge from their asking price and it was priced too high, so we didn''t get it. Then, about a month and half later, we found our house. The best house we could imagine, and by far better than the first house we fell in love with and about $25k less and 900 square feet bigger, with a finished basement. So, in the end, it worked out just perfectly.

Still, the let down is pretty intense in the moment.

Wishing you all the best!!!
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The house is gorgeous! I love the kitchen! Sorry they didn''t come down much. Keeping my fingers crossed for you! I''m sure it''ll all work out!
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October the house is beautiful! Keeping my fingers crossed for you and sending house dust your way!!
 
Thank you everyone for your dust and suggestions. Sorry about being MIA since yesterday but DH and I were out of town so no internet.

Basically, we don''t have the house as of yet. This weekend was the most gorgeous weeked this city has seen in a while so there were a TON of people at the open house yesterday and today, so the agent said the owners don''t really want to come lower for now.

DH and I tortured ourselves by staking out the open house today and it was hard to see so many people go in. However, a good chunk of them were just ''nosy neighbours'' who were checking it out and not interested in buying, but we did see some couples etc with their agents so that isn''t great.

Ah well.Nothing we can do for now. If they haven''t received an offer in a few days, it may turn in our favour. You never know right?

I really had no idea this would be so stressful!

Thanks again for the support. I will keep you updated either way...
 
Aw, I know how stressful this time is. We walked away from our current home multiple times because the owners "refused to come down" and were "offended" that we thought they would accept the offers we made. Guess what? They came down, and we got the house! It just took a lot of time and patience, and every time my DH said we were walking away from the house I threw a hissy fit. And then every time we walked away they ended up coming back with a much lower offer for us. The waiting was horrible, but it all worked out in the end!
 
Thanks Haven - that actually makes me feel a lot better. I am trying to keep my cool, and stories like that definitely help.

We should know in a couple days if ''lots of interest'' actually turns into an offer. If not, we''ll definitely be in a better position to bargain.

Cross your fingers for me! :-)
 
K so we just found out that someone else put in an offer on the house - the agent is going to hold off looking at it until tomorrow so that we can put in another offer.

Ugh. I didn''t want to be in this position.

I figure we should just go in at what our limit was (which is halfway between asking and what we last bid) and go for it. We likely won''tget it, but at least we try right?

Anyone else been in this situation? Any suggestions?
 
Hubby and I have been in that situation each individually, and as a couple, four different times. Unfortunately you MUST be prepared to walk away if things don''t go your way. I''d certainly make a counter offer, but the vendor will likely just push and push that little bit more and more until they get their reserve, or that has been our experience at any rate. Take a leap of faith but stand firm, and stick to your limit or less. You never know the other bidder''s situation, things may not work out for them financially or otherwise. As tough as it is to think of now, there will be other opportunities should this one not work out!! I do wish you all the best and am crossing everything for you that this is the house for you and your hubby!!!
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Okay - so the last offer has been submitted. If it doesn''t work, we have to walk.

We should know tonight. So please send your dust this way :-)
 
Dust dust dust!

Even if this house doesn''t work out, I am SURE you will find exactly what you''re looking for. FI and I put a TON of offers in on different houses (guess our neighborhood is popular), and kept getting outbid. Each time we were bummed, but the last one we put the offer on was THE house. And we got it!

When it comes to houses...there''s a lot of fishies in the sea! Good luck!
 
Well...we lost the house
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We went in with our best offer and it was beat by 5 thousand.

Ugh...this really, really sucks.
 
Oh, I''m sorry, October! I hope that you will find what I have found in the past -- these things have a way of working themselves out for the best. The next house you find will be better than the one you lost. This might not help right now, but in time, I''m sure it will.

Chin up for now!
 
Thanks LV. I feel a bit better now but I was feeling pretty terrible about an hour ago. Losing over 5K was the worst part - I wish it had been 10 or 15K so that I KNOW we couldn''t have done it. But 5? We could have made it work.

I know that is a slippery slope (only 5K more turns into just another 7K etc) so I am glad that we stuck to our guns (kind of, anyways) but ouch - 5K?
 
Date: 2/9/2009 1:34:02 PM
Author: october2008bride
Thanks LV. I feel a bit better now but I was feeling pretty terrible about an hour ago. Losing over 5K was the worst part - I wish it had been 10 or 15K so that I KNOW we couldn't have done it. But 5? We could have made it work.

I know that is a slippery slope (only 5K more turns into just another 7K etc) so I am glad that we stuck to our guns (kind of, anyways) but ouch - 5K?
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I am very sorry you didn't get the house...it was fantastic. And the thing that really sucks is that 5k, over the course of a 30 year mortage, is like literally a couple dollars per month. However, if you don't have it...you don't have it and there is no sense in beating yourself up over it. There was nothing you could do. And, lets be honest, you don't know the other bidder's situation...they might have been able to **always** top you...this is a buyers market for sure. And, when you think about it, they beat you by out bidding by 5k...to outbid them, you would have had to spend an additional 6k...so, there you go down a slippery slope.

Buying a home is a huge deal...and while the duplex was beautiful and classic...sticking to your original goal is a good start into homeownership.

Happy future huntings!
 
Ohh...I''m sorry, october. I checked this thread just now to see whether your offer was accepted...... Bummer.
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But I''m sure there are other great houses out there, though.
 
Thanks Italia and Sha - it really does stink but I know something else will be out there.

I should feel lucky that a) I have a great rental right now that we can afford, b) we are not being forced to move, so there is no time crunch, c) everything I read is that the market is getting worse, so maybe we''ll be happy we didn''t get this and d) now I have a better idea of what I want/need in a home.

I am trying to stay positive - and if I were giving advice I would totally say that something as good if not better will come along and I''ll probably be grateful this didn''t work out.

The pessmist in me says that is like saying it is good luck when a bird craps on you - only the person who got crapped on says that! The guy standing next to him is the one who feels lucky!!

However - I must remember. It is just bricks and wood, right?
 
Aw, October, I''m so sorry you didn''t get the house.

I know how devastating it can feel, and you sound like me--I couldn''t help getting attached to a house, and when the deal didn''t work out, I was really upset. I even posted one of the houses on this board, and I was so sad when it didn''t work out, and then guess what? A few houses later I walked into this little ranch in a totally different location and FELL IN LOVE. AND, we made that deal work out in the end.

My husband kept telling me that it was going to be okay, we''d find the right house for us, and when it was right, it would work. And it did.

Now that I look back on it, I am so grateful that those other houses didn''t work out. I could not be happier than where we are right now.

GOOD LUCK! Just know that you''ll find a fabulous house, and you''ll make it yours.
 
Date: 2/9/2009 2:26:42 PM
Author: october2008bride
Thanks Italia and Sha - it really does stink but I know something else will be out there.

I should feel lucky that a) I have a great rental right now that we can afford, b) we are not being forced to move, so there is no time crunch, c) everything I read is that the market is getting worse, so maybe we''ll be happy we didn''t get this and d) now I have a better idea of what I want/need in a home.

I am trying to stay positive - and if I were giving advice I would totally say that something as good if not better will come along and I''ll probably be grateful this didn''t work out.

The pessmist in me says that is like saying it is good luck when a bird craps on you - only the person who got crapped on says that! The guy standing next to him is the one who feels lucky!!

However - I must remember. It is just bricks and wood, right?
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I was just going to say this! My FI and I have been ina similar situation twice, before we got our house.

The first time, we both fell in love and had already moved in in our minds, and got out bid. We were devastated at the time but thinking back, I wouldn''t ever trade what we ended up with for that first house.

The second time, we were outbid, and then the original buyer''s deal fell through and we got the house after all. So I don''t doubt that you will find the perfect house for you, but it will just take a little patience and maybe some heartbreak, but once you are in *your* house, it will all be a distant memory.
 
Date: 2/9/2009 11:44:57 AM
Author: october2008bride
Well...we lost the house
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We went in with our best offer and it was beat by 5 thousand.


Ugh...this really, really sucks.
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It does suck. Remember that you could have been beat by more than 5 thousand. If you upped your offered, then they did, then you, it could have turned into a nasty bidding war with you spending more than you wanted.

Even it takes a while, you''ll find something. Good luck!
 
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