So, you’ve learnt how to buy a house in Australia and would like to know some real estate negotiation tips & tricks to help you get a great deal?
Let’s dive into some strategic property advice and tips used by many top real estate agents in the housing industry.
Taking the leap into homeownership? Dive deep into our comprehensive article on how to put in an offer for a house to ensure you’re making the best choice.
Real estate negotiation
All parties involved in any negotiation, including a real estate agent, are aiming to get the best outcome. Specifically, when buying a property, your end goal is to get the best deal for you.
However, real estate negotiations can be tricky and challenging. You need some serious strategic financial planning to get a victory.
Sometimes, the real estate deal could get called off due to a minor mistake or a wrong move from one party. If you are acting as a buyer’s agent, ensure to update them with every move.
This is why the most skillful negotiators are people who understand persuasion techniques and negotiation strategies.
What are these negotiation strategies? They’re outlined below.
The 10 tips and tricks for successful real estate deals
Here are some tips for a strategic property plan to win a negotiation for an investment-grade property.
1. Do your due diligence
Before entering a real estate negotiation or sitting at the negotiation table, do your due diligence to investigate the property. This is a vital step to successful negotiations. Investigate the property in question so you can be armed with all the necessary information to negotiate a good deal.
When buying a property, you want to know more about the asking price. You’d want to ensure that you know what the property’s real market value is compared to what the seller is asking for.
Doing your research before the negotiation is also important to help you learn more about the other party and potential issues that may occur. In general, you can improve your chances of achieving a desirable outcome when you take the time to learn more about the real estate deal and the parties involved.
2. Keep your emotions in check
Emotions can get intense during a negotiation process. You can get over-excited and lose sight of your end goal. Similarly, there’s the tendency to lose your cool and get into a conflict due to something the other party says.
Therefore, it’s important to be calm, clear-headed, and positive-minded during the negotiating process. Remember not to take things personally and make decisions based on logic and facts, not emotions.
3. Listen more than you speak
This is one of the important negotiation skills needed for successful negotiation. Active listening is all about being attentive and interpreting body language/non-verbal cues.
It helps you gather more information about the deal and the other party involved in the negotiation process. It also helps to prevent miscommunication which could lead to conflict.
More importantly, listening to the other party speak can help you gauge their commitment to the deal and identify creative ways to achieve a more favourable outcome.
So, when you find yourself negotiating, don’t be in a hurry to speak. This is a powerful negotiation strategy that can give you the upper hand and increase your chances of getting a better deal.
4. Be assertive yet polite
Another tip and trick to successful real estate negotiation is being confident and assertive. In summary, this is about being bold and asking for what you want as a potential buyer.
Remember to sound decisive, assuring, and direct during the negotiation process. You want to show the other party you are fully committed to your decision. So, use affirmative words while maintaining a polite tone.
5. Always opt for face-to-face conversations
This is also another important tip for successful negotiations. There are many benefits of face-to-face conversations over phone calls or emails during a negotiation process.
First, face-to-face meetings allow you to know the other party’s personality. It allows you to study facial expressions and body gestures that they may not express in words.
Most importantly, physical contact improves rapport and strengthens business relationships. This also reduces the possibility of either party changing their mind and cancelling the deal late in the negotiation process.
6. Be willing to settle on common grounds
Negotiating with a mindset to win the negotiations is not in your or the other party’s best interest. This mindset creates an atmosphere of competition, selfishness, and conflict.
Instead, have the mindset to settle on mutually beneficial terms or agreements.This ensures a win-win situation for all parties involved.
7. Don’t be afraid to walk away
Another vital tip for successful negotiations is knowing when to walk away from an unfavourable deal. Ultimately, you want to get the best price and be happy with your purchase.
Therefore, if at any point of the negotiation process, you sense that the deal doesn’t align with your end goal, don’t feel pressured to continue with the deal. No matter how perfect or enticing the deal is, walk away from it if the seller refuses to settle for a more favourable purchase price.
8. Have a contingency plan
This means having other options. Precisely, it means having other properties you can invest in. Overall, a contingency plan ensures you’re not pressured into accepting an unfavourable deal.
It also helps you stay confident throughout the negotiation and increase your chances of getting the deal.
9. Stay focused on your end goal
When you start negotiating, stay focused on your end goal. Remember that you’re negotiating to get the best deal, whatever that means for you.
Precisely, you’d want to ensure that at the end of the day, you get a fair deal- one that’s within the true value of the property you’re buying. The aim is to opt for transactions creating wealth, so your investment won’t go in vain.
10. Consider fair market value rather than the asking price
Finally, an important aspect in knowing how to negotiate when buying a house is your knowledge. Your negotiations should be based on the market price. Before this time, you’ve already researched to identify the fair market value for the property you intend to buy.
Sometimes, property sellers can get sentimental and may want to demand more than what their property is worth. So, it’s up to you to ensure you get a fair deal by first bringing the offer down to the fair market value.
