| Time is one of the basic elements of real estate negotiation. Do you know this secret of using it well?
One of the crucial elements of real estate negotiation is time. Understand and master the use of time, and you can buy a home for thousands less. Here is one of the most important aspects of time:
Deadlines In Real Estate Negotiation
Time is of the essence. It even says as much on most real estate contracts. What does this mean? It means that whoever controls or understands the elements of time has the better negotiating position.
When I bought my first piece of property, I asked the seller why he was selling. He said he was moving. I asked him when he was moving, and he said in a couple weeks. He also mentioned that he wanted to close the sale before he moved. I offered him 20% less than he was asking, and he accepted.
He gave away too much information. Specifically, he gave away his deadline. One of the most important things to understand in real estate negotiation is deadlines. The two specific things to remember are: 1. Don't give away your deadline(s), and 2. Find the other side's deadline(s).
Find out whatever you can about any relevant deadlines. Sometimes there isn't a clear deadline, or there are several deadlines for different parts of the negotiation. Whatever the case, the more information you can gather about those deadlines, the better.
How do you use that information once you have it? The crudest method is to simply delay and wait until the last moment to negotiate. This only works if the other side doesn't walk away, and if your own deadline |
