A:

The more you know about a seller’s motivation, the stronger a negotiating position you are in. Your agent should contact the agent & ask them the right questions to know why they are selling & what to do to make an offer attractive to the homeowner. For example, a seller who must move quickly due to a job transfer may be amenable to a lower price with a speedy escrow. Other so-called “motivated sellers” include people going through a divorce or who have already purchased another home. Some agents are more seasoned in negotiating & even finding out how best to proceed just be being a good communicator & asking the right questions and leveraging relationships between agents.

Sometimes listing agents with multiple offers may not be too helpful to selling agents wanting to best represent their buyers specially if they have other offers, and they are confident that they already have solid potential for a transaction that does not fall out of Escrow.

Remember, that the listing price is what the seller would like to receive but is not necessarily what they will settle for. Before making an offer, check the recent sales prices of comparable homes in the neighborhood to see how the seller’s asking price stacks up before you determine your offer price.
Some experts discourage making deliberate low-ball offers. While such an offer can be presented, it can also sour the sale and discourage the seller from negotiating at all if they feel they the process is not a Win Win. In fact, sometimes, sellers may not even respond to an offer or think that the buyer’s aren’t serious if the offer price is too far away from the asking price.