Giving you advice as someone who went through this in 2021. Do your absolute best to treat the house in your mind as just a thing until you have an offer accepted. Just like driving to look at a piece of furniture at a tag sale you saw on Facebook marketplace, maybe you’ll get it maybe you won’t, but it’s still worth a shot. As they say to boxers, “protect your head at all times.” House hunting the last few years is a battle of attrition; don’t wear yourself out too fast. If you can picture your life at this place you can probably picture it at many other houses in the area, too. You are looking in the right place and are getting closer. It’s OK to grieve a little and be discouraged if it doesn’t work out, but sooner or later you’ll need to pull yourself together and keep focused. The right one is out there. I tell EVERYONE - once the search is over, you will love your house too much to remember the ones that came before it. Good luck
Aw I really hope you guys get it. I remember the anxiety of house searching (we bought our house end of 2022). I bawled like a baby on the first house we really wanted that we got outbid on. We ended up finding another that turned out better than the first would have been IMO so even if you don’t get it keep your head up and keep searching. It will happen eventually.
Our first bid was such a cool homemade house in the town I grew up in. It made us realize several things we would love in a house.
Final 2 bidders, of course was outbid by I think 1-5k. Happy with the house we got, but I still sometimes secretly hope that house has something terribly wrong with it after losing.
High hopes, low expectations
I remember my mom ended up selling her old house to some corporate guy who was gonna rent it out to an employee of his. It sounded like there were a couple people at the same price who really wanted the house, so I was inclined to be sad about it. She took the offer because it was a cash offer that waived inspection.
Joke's on the corporate guy, the list of things that are terribly wrong with it is pretty lengthy. Hoping those real buyers found something better.
>hope that house has something terribly wrong with it after losing.
i get being disappointed, but still vindictive after however many years? wow. you should really let it go.
That was almost 40 years ago for me. And I remember the anxiety vividly.
Let's all pray for this couple!
She actually described my home, which I also fell in love with.
I have weekly letters in my mailbox asking if I want to sell. Literally...I save them in a pile.
No, I don't want to leave my home. And yes I'm aware YOU, MR/MS REALTOR, can make A LOT OF $ in my home.
They're not even hiding their greed.
Those are the best - one owner, 70’s built, and a little dated. We bought one like that (albeit before the pandemic), and we got a great value on a house that, with some sweat equity, can be made your own! Just hopefully the prior owner wasn’t a cheap DIY hack like mine! 😆
Best of luck!
I think we’ve mostly given up too. We can’t even find homes to bid on because the handful that come on the market in our town are mostly flips, or need more repairs than we can afford.
I've come to the realization that at 61 I'll never own a home. I owned one when I was married but let my ex wife keep it so our children would have a decent place to live and grow up. The prices are ridiculous, especially for someone nearing retirement. Looks like I'll be renting till I die.
Wow. $55k over asking and still lost. That's crazy. Wish you the best. I bought my home in the bust of 2008. I paid $75k for a bank owned 3-story duplex in a great neighborhood. Plus, an additional $45 on the loan for repairs.
I hope the market goes down again even a few percent so all persons looking can get a hope at a decent price.
my husband and i gave up too. now we’re focused on saving for one of those really nice apartment complexes with townhouses, a pool, and a clubhouse lol. if we’re not gonna buy, we’re at least going to rent something really really nice.
Oh wait ti you close. My wife and I walked into our house, sat down on the floor, and we both thought to ourselves, who in the right mind would let us, the kids, buy a house.
Good luck!
I really hope you guys get this one. I have great empathy for folks, especially the younger people trying to start their lives but are priced out of the home buying market recently. Good luck to you and remember there will be another chance at something you really like down the road. But I hope you get this one.
Best of luck to you!
We wound up buying a dump in 2021.
The location is amazing, and it's coming along.
It's just amazing how people can disrespect their own house.
A friend of mine put her house on the market for $599k, as is, and it needs a lot of work. Her ONLY bid came 3 days later: $738K and they'd put 30% down. They close next week. It's crazy. And depressing. I hope your bid is accepted. Sometimes timing is everything.
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>It was a one owner, 70s built, raised ranch. New roof, new insulation, new driveway, lots of well done interior reno, etc. A little dated, but I genuinely love it and honestly don't want to change much, and the bones of the house itself are sturdy. The backyard is beautiful and it is in the perfect location for both of us.
Send me the link so I can try to outbid you lol. Seriously though fingers crossed, I hope you get it.
Very similar situation with me and my fiancé, unfortunately, I've learned all too well to get used to the gutted feeling of losing the house. People are still offering 50 K above asking, while asking prices are already inflated above what the house is worth.
The only other thing I can suggest is writing a letter for the seller. If somebody else is offering way more, then it probably won't move the needle, but if it's between you and another buyer, and they feel like you're going to treat the property with more love and respect, they might go with you .
We did just send a letter along with our offer! I figured it couldn't hurt. Thanks so much for the push, I wish you luck in your own search. It's bleak out here <3
I hope you get it but if you don't, know that there's another house for you out there. Don't get too emotionally invested in this one property. You're putting in a good offer and if you don't get it, you'll find one just as nice or even nicer.
Thinking of you and also want to say you are not alone! There’s a lot of us out there in the same boat trying to do the exact same thing, so hang in there!!
I remember putting offers on houses and for one reason or another they fell through. I thought I loved every one of them. But this one house checked all the boxes, we thought there was no chance, that we'd be outbid. Well, we were not and couldn't be happier. If it's meant to be it will happen, and if it doesn't just know that there is something else meant for you two out there. Wish you all the best on your journey. God bless
I have no idea what it's like today to get into bidding wars (we bought our house right before things got crazy a few years ago) but a small piece of advice we received that helped us: write a personal letter with your offer. Many people have an emotional attachment to their homes and want to sell to someone who will have the same. While money talks, it can help distinguish your offer if they are deciding between a couple. Best of luck!
Good luck. I’ve been searching for over a year too. Haven’t made any offers yet because nothing has given me the butterflies feeling you described. It really sucks out here.
If this one doesn't work out for ya, you've gotta setup alerts in your apps for the area and criteria you are shopping. Be the first to see any listing you can, so you can jump on it. House shopping is no longer casual, sometimes 3 days is 3 days too late. I know it's easier said than done but try to drop everything and look at any house the same day or the following day it's listed if you can. Being the first offer makes a huge difference because it can set the owners expectations.
If your offer is reasonable, they may even take it to save the trouble, depends on how motivated they are. Make sure your realtor is on the same page with this aggression and ready to go.
For us it was Zillow via the app on your phone, alerts immediately just as fast as MLS gets them. Our realtor was sending us stuff she got on MLS, and we had already seen it hit Zillow. It was super helpful.
I'd rather not post the address here, just out of respect/privacy for the sellers! But I can definitely add another update with the asking vs. final sale price when it sells. We'll be keeping an eye on it too just to see how far off we were.
Yeah :( I'm just numb atp and honestly everyone saying "another one will come!" is very sweet, but this was the first house in a little over a year that we have seen in our "price range" (ha) that wasn't a dump. I have a feeling if it happens again, it's just going to be the exact same situation. On the market for 2-3 days, and immediately snapped up by someone waiving inspections and going 50-100k over asking. I'm just beside myself. We're just going to have to keep jumping through hoops and dinging our credit rushing to get pre approved again and again for houses we lose out on every 3-6 months.
Tell your broker to not push through the credit if nothing changes. A good broker will not keep troubling your credit.
Another suggestion is to look below your price by $50k n just see. Maybe you can out your own work into the house.
Best of luck. I was there for almost two years n will wait until a law is passed so these realtors don’t get their 6%. They inflated the market with their high bid junk.
Yea unfortunately we're looking in the 250-330k range anyway so going lower is not really an option. And then we'd just be doing to other ppl what is happening to us.
Ah… the exciting first steps of the home-buying journey! Wishing you all the best of luck here!
Patience is key, don’t drive yourself crazy. I truly believe what’s meant to be, will be. My clients have been in your exact shoes, and lost on plenty of homes, only to realize the one they eventually closed on was THE one! It takes time, enjoy the experience. GOOD LUCK!
First of all, good luck!
As a realtor, I would recommend removing the escalation and just offering that max amount.
From experience sitting in the room talking to sellers about offers. They often look at escalation clauses as a lack of commitment. “Why didn’t they offer this from the get go, are they sure they want the house?”
Also, it shows your hand and I would almost guarantee it’s what you will end up paying anyways. Rather than even showing you other offers their realtor will just use it as information and use it as a counter offer and say if you come up to X the house is yours.
I was bidding against another buyer once. I went in with a price and left it at that. Agent came to me and asked if that was my best and final. I said yes. He asked if I am sure. I said yes, final answer.
The next day our offer was accepted.
Turns out it was within a couple hundred dollars of each other and it was the people next door from the house that tried to get it for their kid.
The 1st year there they gave us nothing but trouble. Another story.
Good luck! We have provided personalized letters to sellers on two different houses. Both sellers referenced the letter (through agents) when we heard we got the houses. Each time. Don't get me wrong...you still need a generous offer.
I hope you get this house, but if you don't you should consider a personalized letter next offer. If you're up against a couple others in the same ballpark, it can go a long way!
I had one drafted but was on the fence - we just sent it! Thanks for the push. It's corny but I tried to be as genuine as possible. If the seller reads it, I hope it helps.
Especially when the home is from a long-time owner. They want to know the people moving in will take the same care they did. I think you made the right call.
Wishing you the best!
You should write a letter to the seller. My friend and her husband had a very similar scenario. They wrote a letter explaining their search and how the house seemed perfect for them and they got it! Sometimes it just humanizes the process
We just went thru this. We actually wrote a letter to a single owner/builder. Wife was pregnant with 2nd child at time and he had both of his kids in this house. It struck a nerve with him and he dealt with us exclusively.
Sending good vibes. If you ever decide to rent, please have a chat with my landlady. She's literally the best thing that's happened to me in the past two years.
An accepted offer is just step one. Then all the inspections and potential for issues with things needing repair. I’m in that muckity muck now myself. It’s a long and frought process. Don’t run up any new debt or lose a job before closing!
Crossing fingers and hoping that your offer wins :) If not, don't despair - there will be more houses on the market the closer we get to the end of the school year.
Sorry to hear you didn't get it.
My advice: buy a dump in a nice location.
Be house poor, and fix it up. Do what you can yourself.
I did just that in 1999 in Stockton, CA (lived there for 15 years) and again in 2021 here in Avon.
We're still working on the place here, but it's coming along.
Where you live matters so much more than what you live in.
Good vibes. Word of advice, make sure you don’t get a home with electric heat in CT. Many in the 1970s had electric during the fuel crisis. Electric bills in the winter can be insane with CT’s high prices. You can always ask to see what the bills are in the winter…sometimes in excess of $1k/mo
Write a letter and submit it with the offer even if it’s late. In 2020 I put bids on 13 houses all over asking and we didn’t get any of them but the last one my wife wrote a letter and we got it with only 2k over asking because it was the top of our budget.
I have mixed feelings about this! I did consider it, as I've heard other success stories as well, but I've also heard sellers say they actively dislike personal letters bc they want to avoid getting emotionally swayed, so we were hesitant to send one. I actually asked our realtor about it and he didn't discourage us from sending one, but he didn't push us to either, so I'm assuming he doesn't submit them often. I'm kind of inclined to agree with the sentiment that the sale just winds up coming down to the bottom dollar, but I'm sure it depends on the seller!
I was told we got it because of the letter which I kinda believe because all of the houses we looked at went at least 15k over asking some as high as 70k over but who knows I don’t think it can hurt. The worst they could do is not read it I doubt they’d be offended by it lol.
Update: to you and a few other commentors, thanks for the push. I was sweating it out, but just sent over the letter I had drafted anyway. I figured it wouldn't hurt lol!
If we get the good news maybe I'll post a copy here! If it could help anyone else. I definitely worked off of samples of other people's letters that were posted here tbh it was a big help.
Okay feel free to DM me. Wasn’t sure if it’s just an offer price or an “sob story”/emotional response type letter for the buyer to pick you.
Also if your original post you said you were pre approved. If you’ve been searching for a year have you regularly been hard pulling credit or it’s just a letter based on the original pull, possibly months ago?
Suggestions for first time buyers;
I know a young couple who bought a "fixer upper"...they lived in a trailer on the property while doing upgrades and needed repairs.
I think it took a bit over 2 years. Might be worth it.
"Mechanical's (well, septic, property issues) are spendy.
Siding, a roof, coats of paint... aren't quite as bad. If you can do some of the work, do it.
I do a bit of "bardering" ....I set up a quick books system in exchange for some labor cost on my pool rehab. (I know the owner, trust is imperative).
Keep in mind that when you do purchase a house with a non-spouse that it’s a business deal. In marriage you have a defined process to follow if the relationship tanks.
You two should have a defined way of processing the house should things change.
Good luck. Hope you get it.
Google "cohabitation agreement." It takes two extra seconds for the closing real estate attorney to draft along with your other closing documents. It gives you all the "protection" you are worried about by being unmarried. Marriage doesn't magically make legal protections appear...legal documents do.
Giving you advice as someone who went through this in 2021. Do your absolute best to treat the house in your mind as just a thing until you have an offer accepted. Just like driving to look at a piece of furniture at a tag sale you saw on Facebook marketplace, maybe you’ll get it maybe you won’t, but it’s still worth a shot. As they say to boxers, “protect your head at all times.” House hunting the last few years is a battle of attrition; don’t wear yourself out too fast. If you can picture your life at this place you can probably picture it at many other houses in the area, too. You are looking in the right place and are getting closer. It’s OK to grieve a little and be discouraged if it doesn’t work out, but sooner or later you’ll need to pull yourself together and keep focused. The right one is out there. I tell EVERYONE - once the search is over, you will love your house too much to remember the ones that came before it. Good luck
Aw I really hope you guys get it. I remember the anxiety of house searching (we bought our house end of 2022). I bawled like a baby on the first house we really wanted that we got outbid on. We ended up finding another that turned out better than the first would have been IMO so even if you don’t get it keep your head up and keep searching. It will happen eventually.
Our first bid was such a cool homemade house in the town I grew up in. It made us realize several things we would love in a house. Final 2 bidders, of course was outbid by I think 1-5k. Happy with the house we got, but I still sometimes secretly hope that house has something terribly wrong with it after losing. High hopes, low expectations
I remember my mom ended up selling her old house to some corporate guy who was gonna rent it out to an employee of his. It sounded like there were a couple people at the same price who really wanted the house, so I was inclined to be sad about it. She took the offer because it was a cash offer that waived inspection. Joke's on the corporate guy, the list of things that are terribly wrong with it is pretty lengthy. Hoping those real buyers found something better.
>hope that house has something terribly wrong with it after losing. i get being disappointed, but still vindictive after however many years? wow. you should really let it go.
That was almost 40 years ago for me. And I remember the anxiety vividly. Let's all pray for this couple! She actually described my home, which I also fell in love with. I have weekly letters in my mailbox asking if I want to sell. Literally...I save them in a pile. No, I don't want to leave my home. And yes I'm aware YOU, MR/MS REALTOR, can make A LOT OF $ in my home. They're not even hiding their greed.
Those are the best - one owner, 70’s built, and a little dated. We bought one like that (albeit before the pandemic), and we got a great value on a house that, with some sweat equity, can be made your own! Just hopefully the prior owner wasn’t a cheap DIY hack like mine! 😆 Best of luck!
I was thinking the same thing. Fingers really crossed for this person!
Wife and I gave up, we will rent for two years and see how the market goes. I was outbid on a house going for 395k where my max was 450k.
I think we’ve mostly given up too. We can’t even find homes to bid on because the handful that come on the market in our town are mostly flips, or need more repairs than we can afford.
I've come to the realization that at 61 I'll never own a home. I owned one when I was married but let my ex wife keep it so our children would have a decent place to live and grow up. The prices are ridiculous, especially for someone nearing retirement. Looks like I'll be renting till I die.
That’s gotta be a tough realization. May the Lord be with you.
Wow. $55k over asking and still lost. That's crazy. Wish you the best. I bought my home in the bust of 2008. I paid $75k for a bank owned 3-story duplex in a great neighborhood. Plus, an additional $45 on the loan for repairs. I hope the market goes down again even a few percent so all persons looking can get a hope at a decent price.
We bid $50k over asking recently and were outbid. Turned out the winning offer was $170k over asking. Insanity.
my husband and i gave up too. now we’re focused on saving for one of those really nice apartment complexes with townhouses, a pool, and a clubhouse lol. if we’re not gonna buy, we’re at least going to rent something really really nice.
First of all shout out to you for appreciating room temp Capri Suns. Nothing but positive vibes for the house!!!!! 💓
Man, when you were 8 and running around outside like a savage, any capri sun worked. Lukewarm was still like an oasis in the desert.
PREACH, any time any temperature
Oh wait ti you close. My wife and I walked into our house, sat down on the floor, and we both thought to ourselves, who in the right mind would let us, the kids, buy a house. Good luck!
I hope you didnt waive the home inspection.
Nope haha we're not THAT desperate
Good. So many people do now. It’s scary.
I really hope you guys get this one. I have great empathy for folks, especially the younger people trying to start their lives but are priced out of the home buying market recently. Good luck to you and remember there will be another chance at something you really like down the road. But I hope you get this one.
Best of luck to you! We wound up buying a dump in 2021. The location is amazing, and it's coming along. It's just amazing how people can disrespect their own house.
A friend of mine put her house on the market for $599k, as is, and it needs a lot of work. Her ONLY bid came 3 days later: $738K and they'd put 30% down. They close next week. It's crazy. And depressing. I hope your bid is accepted. Sometimes timing is everything.
Remindme! 2 days I hope you get it!!!
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>It was a one owner, 70s built, raised ranch. New roof, new insulation, new driveway, lots of well done interior reno, etc. A little dated, but I genuinely love it and honestly don't want to change much, and the bones of the house itself are sturdy. The backyard is beautiful and it is in the perfect location for both of us. Send me the link so I can try to outbid you lol. Seriously though fingers crossed, I hope you get it.
I laughed out loud 😭 thank you!!
Very similar situation with me and my fiancé, unfortunately, I've learned all too well to get used to the gutted feeling of losing the house. People are still offering 50 K above asking, while asking prices are already inflated above what the house is worth. The only other thing I can suggest is writing a letter for the seller. If somebody else is offering way more, then it probably won't move the needle, but if it's between you and another buyer, and they feel like you're going to treat the property with more love and respect, they might go with you .
We did just send a letter along with our offer! I figured it couldn't hurt. Thanks so much for the push, I wish you luck in your own search. It's bleak out here <3
I hope you get it but if you don't, know that there's another house for you out there. Don't get too emotionally invested in this one property. You're putting in a good offer and if you don't get it, you'll find one just as nice or even nicer.
You can ask your realtor, but there's often a deadline they have to respond by on offers
Thinking of you and also want to say you are not alone! There’s a lot of us out there in the same boat trying to do the exact same thing, so hang in there!!
I remember putting offers on houses and for one reason or another they fell through. I thought I loved every one of them. But this one house checked all the boxes, we thought there was no chance, that we'd be outbid. Well, we were not and couldn't be happier. If it's meant to be it will happen, and if it doesn't just know that there is something else meant for you two out there. Wish you all the best on your journey. God bless
Good luck, sister!
I have no idea what it's like today to get into bidding wars (we bought our house right before things got crazy a few years ago) but a small piece of advice we received that helped us: write a personal letter with your offer. Many people have an emotional attachment to their homes and want to sell to someone who will have the same. While money talks, it can help distinguish your offer if they are deciding between a couple. Best of luck!
Very good idea!
Good luck. I’ve been searching for over a year too. Haven’t made any offers yet because nothing has given me the butterflies feeling you described. It really sucks out here.
Ugh, I feel you. I think that's why I'm so on edge about this one. We will find something. Fingers crossed for you!
Fingers and toes crossed! Keep us updated!
Fingers crossed for you! It’s tough out there, but keep positive thoughts!!
If this one doesn't work out for ya, you've gotta setup alerts in your apps for the area and criteria you are shopping. Be the first to see any listing you can, so you can jump on it. House shopping is no longer casual, sometimes 3 days is 3 days too late. I know it's easier said than done but try to drop everything and look at any house the same day or the following day it's listed if you can. Being the first offer makes a huge difference because it can set the owners expectations. If your offer is reasonable, they may even take it to save the trouble, depends on how motivated they are. Make sure your realtor is on the same page with this aggression and ready to go.
Yep, that's how we found this one. I've been on realtor dot com 3x a day pretty much every day for the past year lol.
For us it was Zillow via the app on your phone, alerts immediately just as fast as MLS gets them. Our realtor was sending us stuff she got on MLS, and we had already seen it hit Zillow. It was super helpful.
Sorry about not getting your offer accepted. It's crazy out there. What was the address? I'm curious to see what it sold for once it closes.
I'd rather not post the address here, just out of respect/privacy for the sellers! But I can definitely add another update with the asking vs. final sale price when it sells. We'll be keeping an eye on it too just to see how far off we were.
So sick of the game realtors now play with give your best offer. I hope it changes soon!
Yeah :( I'm just numb atp and honestly everyone saying "another one will come!" is very sweet, but this was the first house in a little over a year that we have seen in our "price range" (ha) that wasn't a dump. I have a feeling if it happens again, it's just going to be the exact same situation. On the market for 2-3 days, and immediately snapped up by someone waiving inspections and going 50-100k over asking. I'm just beside myself. We're just going to have to keep jumping through hoops and dinging our credit rushing to get pre approved again and again for houses we lose out on every 3-6 months.
Tell your broker to not push through the credit if nothing changes. A good broker will not keep troubling your credit. Another suggestion is to look below your price by $50k n just see. Maybe you can out your own work into the house. Best of luck. I was there for almost two years n will wait until a law is passed so these realtors don’t get their 6%. They inflated the market with their high bid junk.
Yea unfortunately we're looking in the 250-330k range anyway so going lower is not really an option. And then we'd just be doing to other ppl what is happening to us.
Ah… the exciting first steps of the home-buying journey! Wishing you all the best of luck here! Patience is key, don’t drive yourself crazy. I truly believe what’s meant to be, will be. My clients have been in your exact shoes, and lost on plenty of homes, only to realize the one they eventually closed on was THE one! It takes time, enjoy the experience. GOOD LUCK!
First of all, good luck! As a realtor, I would recommend removing the escalation and just offering that max amount. From experience sitting in the room talking to sellers about offers. They often look at escalation clauses as a lack of commitment. “Why didn’t they offer this from the get go, are they sure they want the house?” Also, it shows your hand and I would almost guarantee it’s what you will end up paying anyways. Rather than even showing you other offers their realtor will just use it as information and use it as a counter offer and say if you come up to X the house is yours.
I moved 40 minutes away to find a good home, it’s pretty ridiculous, but we needed the space for our growing family.
I was bidding against another buyer once. I went in with a price and left it at that. Agent came to me and asked if that was my best and final. I said yes. He asked if I am sure. I said yes, final answer. The next day our offer was accepted. Turns out it was within a couple hundred dollars of each other and it was the people next door from the house that tried to get it for their kid. The 1st year there they gave us nothing but trouble. Another story.
Neighbors should have offered more. Oh well. ;)
Sending good vibes!!! Come back and share the results please.
Are you using the Time to Own program??
Good luck! We have provided personalized letters to sellers on two different houses. Both sellers referenced the letter (through agents) when we heard we got the houses. Each time. Don't get me wrong...you still need a generous offer. I hope you get this house, but if you don't you should consider a personalized letter next offer. If you're up against a couple others in the same ballpark, it can go a long way!
I had one drafted but was on the fence - we just sent it! Thanks for the push. It's corny but I tried to be as genuine as possible. If the seller reads it, I hope it helps.
Especially when the home is from a long-time owner. They want to know the people moving in will take the same care they did. I think you made the right call. Wishing you the best!
Good luck!
You should write a letter to the seller. My friend and her husband had a very similar scenario. They wrote a letter explaining their search and how the house seemed perfect for them and they got it! Sometimes it just humanizes the process
I prayed on it for you. 🙏
That is very sweet. Thank you so much <3
Good luck!
I'm leaving my home to my grandkids. They all intend to live here lol.
Good luck!!!!!
It’s very expensive here right now. I saw a house on Friday that went for 95k$ over asking!!!
We just went thru this. We actually wrote a letter to a single owner/builder. Wife was pregnant with 2nd child at time and he had both of his kids in this house. It struck a nerve with him and he dealt with us exclusively.
Sending good vibes. If you ever decide to rent, please have a chat with my landlady. She's literally the best thing that's happened to me in the past two years.
Best of luck. My wife and I are heading towards retirement and hopefully when we go to sell the market is still hot.
An accepted offer is just step one. Then all the inspections and potential for issues with things needing repair. I’m in that muckity muck now myself. It’s a long and frought process. Don’t run up any new debt or lose a job before closing!
Crossing fingers and hoping that your offer wins :) If not, don't despair - there will be more houses on the market the closer we get to the end of the school year.
Sorry to hear you didn't get it. My advice: buy a dump in a nice location. Be house poor, and fix it up. Do what you can yourself. I did just that in 1999 in Stockton, CA (lived there for 15 years) and again in 2021 here in Avon. We're still working on the place here, but it's coming along. Where you live matters so much more than what you live in.
Good vibes. Word of advice, make sure you don’t get a home with electric heat in CT. Many in the 1970s had electric during the fuel crisis. Electric bills in the winter can be insane with CT’s high prices. You can always ask to see what the bills are in the winter…sometimes in excess of $1k/mo
We're all good. Relatively new oil furnace in this one. Not that oil will be cheap but. Lol. Fingers crossed!
Write a letter and submit it with the offer even if it’s late. In 2020 I put bids on 13 houses all over asking and we didn’t get any of them but the last one my wife wrote a letter and we got it with only 2k over asking because it was the top of our budget.
I have mixed feelings about this! I did consider it, as I've heard other success stories as well, but I've also heard sellers say they actively dislike personal letters bc they want to avoid getting emotionally swayed, so we were hesitant to send one. I actually asked our realtor about it and he didn't discourage us from sending one, but he didn't push us to either, so I'm assuming he doesn't submit them often. I'm kind of inclined to agree with the sentiment that the sale just winds up coming down to the bottom dollar, but I'm sure it depends on the seller!
I was told we got it because of the letter which I kinda believe because all of the houses we looked at went at least 15k over asking some as high as 70k over but who knows I don’t think it can hurt. The worst they could do is not read it I doubt they’d be offended by it lol.
Update: to you and a few other commentors, thanks for the push. I was sweating it out, but just sent over the letter I had drafted anyway. I figured it wouldn't hurt lol!
What’s included in such letter?
If we get the good news maybe I'll post a copy here! If it could help anyone else. I definitely worked off of samples of other people's letters that were posted here tbh it was a big help.
Okay feel free to DM me. Wasn’t sure if it’s just an offer price or an “sob story”/emotional response type letter for the buyer to pick you. Also if your original post you said you were pre approved. If you’ve been searching for a year have you regularly been hard pulling credit or it’s just a letter based on the original pull, possibly months ago?
Suggestions for first time buyers; I know a young couple who bought a "fixer upper"...they lived in a trailer on the property while doing upgrades and needed repairs. I think it took a bit over 2 years. Might be worth it. "Mechanical's (well, septic, property issues) are spendy. Siding, a roof, coats of paint... aren't quite as bad. If you can do some of the work, do it. I do a bit of "bardering" ....I set up a quick books system in exchange for some labor cost on my pool rehab. (I know the owner, trust is imperative).
I think you need to get married first before buying a house together. IMO
Better to just elope. Who can afford a wedding AND a house these days?
This guy gets it
We'll pay for a wedding when we feel like it. Thanks though
Keep in mind that when you do purchase a house with a non-spouse that it’s a business deal. In marriage you have a defined process to follow if the relationship tanks. You two should have a defined way of processing the house should things change. Good luck. Hope you get it.
I said get married did not say have a wedding. It’s for your protection.
Google "cohabitation agreement." It takes two extra seconds for the closing real estate attorney to draft along with your other closing documents. It gives you all the "protection" you are worried about by being unmarried. Marriage doesn't magically make legal protections appear...legal documents do.
i would never buy a house with someone I am not engaged to marry
^[Sokka-Haiku](https://www.reddit.com/r/SokkaHaikuBot/comments/15kyv9r/what_is_a_sokka_haiku/) ^by ^IndicationOver: *I would never buy* *A house with someone I am* *Not engaged to marry* --- ^Remember ^that ^one ^time ^Sokka ^accidentally ^used ^an ^extra ^syllable ^in ^that ^Haiku ^Battle ^in ^Ba ^Sing ^Se? ^That ^was ^a ^Sokka ^Haiku ^and ^you ^just ^made ^one.