Buyers are regaining some bargaining power in today’s housing market

If you’re thinking of buying a home today, we have some welcome news for you. Still a seller’s market, but a milder seller’s market than last year. And the days when you felt you had to pay well over asking price to avoid surprises or consider offers may be coming to an end. You need to reduce it and increase your bargaining power. That’s because buyer demand and bidding wars have eased this year. If bidding wars are the biggest factor keeping bystanders off, here are the two trends needed to get back on the market.

The Unexpected Renewed Over the past two years, more and more buyers have willingly skipped critical steps in the home buying process, such as appraisals and inspections, in order to win the bidding war. But in the meantime, fewer and fewer people do without watching and evaluating. Recent data from the National Association of Realtors (NAR) shows that the percentage of buyers who do not inspect and appraise their homes is declining. A recent realtor.com survey confirms that more and more sellers are accepting offers with these terms. According to an August survey:

• 95% of sellers say buyers have requested a home inspection.

• 67% of sellers negotiated repairs with buyers as a result of inspection results.

Sellers are willing to cover closing costs Generally, closing costs range from 2% to 5% of the home purchase price. Before the pandemic, a common bargaining tactic for sellers was to sweeten the deal by paying a portion of the buyer’s closing costs. This has not happened very often during the past two years of wastage. Now, with market changes and demand easing, realtor.com data suggests this is making a comeback. According to a recent article, he 32% of sellers pay some or all of the buyer’s closing costs. This could be the bargaining tool you see when buying a home. Keep in mind that graduation loan limits are set by the lender and may vary by state and loan type. Work closely with your credit advisor to understand how much a seller can contribute to your local closing costs.

 Despite the highly competitive housing market in recent years, today’s data suggests that negotiations are beginning to return to the table. This is good news if you plan to enter the housing market. If you want to know how the market is changing in our area, please contact us.

Find out why Kaya Homes is the leader in Long Island real estate and are your go-to realtor in the Lynbrook, Oceanside, Malverne, Hewlett, Valley Stream, Baldwin, East Rockaway, Woodmere, Cedarhurst, Hewlett Harbor, and Freeport area.