House 11 Offer Accepted!!

After getting the fastest rejection of an offer a few days ago, I just got the fastest acceptance - about 2 hours. I think that means I offered too much :-) Actually, I think the timing just worked out on this one. The owners are actually in the process of moving out now and the agent said he kinda pushed them to accept the offer. Once escrow has closed, I'm going to see if I can talk to the agent and get some background info, like how many previous offers there were, etc. I can't ask now because the sale is not yet final and he still has a fiduciary responsibility to the sellers. However, once escrow closes, he will be free to talk. I was originally planning on offering $118,000 but raised my offer $2,000 because there was so much equity, I figured there was less of a need for the owners to sell (the foreclosure auction will still over a month away) and / or there would be other offers higher than mine. I guess I was wrong.

One thing I did do which probably helped me, was to include my standard fax cover sheet for offers. On this, I explicitly point out to the agent that my offer is a cash offer, I am offering a fast close, will take the property "as-is" (if that's the case), and that I am not using an agent. For this last point, I also mention their seller will save X dollars because they don't have to pay a commission to the buyer's agent. I replace X with 3% of my offer price. I think it has a bigger psychological impact to show how many thousands the seller will be saving by accepting my offer (nevermind the fact that my offer is already thousands below their list price).

Anyway, there was a counter offer, but the price stayed the same. The only changes were that escrow is to close "on or before 3/11" (instead of "on 3/11") and I take possession 2 days after the close of escrow. This is to give the owners time to move into a rental. The agent explained they are a bit short on cash and so they need to get the money from the sale to move into a rental. That's ok with me. They are an older couple and I don't think they will do much damage.

Some other facts about the property: it's a corner lot (which explains the bigger lot size), has a screened in patio, a storage shed, and a 2 car carport. It was built in 1971. I'm figuring this property will be closer to the high end of the comp range based on the listing price, the condition, and the lot size.