The 7 Biggest Home Price Negotiation Blunders

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Elizabeth and PF: That is not taking advantage. There is not enough info to determine if the little guy was kicked when he was down. And, I would submit that regardless of the situation, the little guy put himself in the situation to get kicked. A prudent person will not buy a home that is out of their price range, and will not have other significant debt that puts a strain on their income. A prudent person will have an emergency fund that will cover expenses for at least 3 months in the case of lay-offs or other unexpected events. Most of our society can't get their hands on $1000 cash if an emergency arises. Would it have better for the little guy to have had his house foreclosed? Regardless of the situation, the little guy IS NOT A VICTIM. He still has the choice to not accept. It is a cruel world for people that are unprepared.

Scott of WA 11:17AM August 30, 2012

I agree with Elizabeth - when I read that I felt bad for the owners who probably lost everything...no one seems to give a hoot about what has happened to the American Dream - no one cares about the little guy...it's all about kicking a dog when it's down...tsk tsk tsk..shame on us...

p.f. of MA 6:03AM August 02, 2012

I vehemently disagree with #6. Getting a buyer to express his/her price point in terms of a range, regardless of the item being sold, is one of the oldest tactics in the salesman's book. Because once a range is on the table, everything but the highest number is immediately discarded. After all, why would a seller take a penny less than you told him/her that you're willing to spend?
A good buyer does a lot of research, understands his/her market and therefore has a specific idea of what a target house is worth in that market. Based on that evaluation, conceiving a range of acceptable prices is a fine approach, but this range should not be made known to the seller (nor to your agent in many cases). If you've done the research, chances are high that your offer is reasonable. If a seller gets offended by or disregards a justly reasoned and fair offer then he/she is most likely not motivated enough to sell in the first place.

Patrick of MD 11:14AM May 31, 2012

Seriously you feel good about taking advantage of people who have no furniture or heat?

Elizabeth of FL 10:27PM May 20, 2012

This was actually very helpful to me as a seller...Now I know the tactics that my potential buyers may be using. :) Thank you.

Hannah of NH 2:43PM January 24, 2012

Is there something similar for negotiating with a builder while buying a new home. Here are my comments on this article:
1. If you know the seller is in a difficult situation, you should hardly be using that information to exploit him/her. Use it to get to a fair price - fine. Remember - bad karma will get you somewhere else.
2. Question - how does one go about finding comparable price of a home in a new development where no much new is available in the immediate vicinity except homes being offered by your builder.
3. That is interesting point. Couldn't you negotiate better by telling them that you do not need a mortagage and will not take the mortgage and your budget is only $xxx,x00.00.
4. Yes - dead on. Not having options puts you in the same situation as seller would be in #1. It is just a house - you can always find another one ;-)
5. Meeting in person is the least you can do. For that price, I can even unite with their soul ;-)
6. Specific number - that is hard to do even for a car. Although, it will be nice to know what is a good number :-)
7. Agreed, if it is within my budget. On the other hand, if I am paying cash. $5000 is still a lot of money and if I can't afford it - then I can certainly afford some ego and use it to walk away ;-)

Yash of MD 12:24AM January 01, 2012

We just made an offer 27,000 less than asking, in hopes that eventually we will meet in the middle without too much stress. WE come up 15 thousand, they come down 14 thousand. Now we plan to re counter at with 8,000 more. Does this sound like we are working toward meeting in the middle. It is a divorce situation, and we know how much was paid for the house. We want a fair deal, but truly don't want to rip anyone off. We are selling our house too, so we can relate with both sides. :-)

Marc of KY 11:23AM August 17, 2011

"If you are capable of paying cash, the sellers may hold firm to their asking price, he adds, "because it means that you are a person of means."
Huh? You are a person of means so you will overpay for something? I thought that people get stupid when buying something on credit, not when using cash (look at all the expensive cars people buy on credit that they would never buy if they had to use cash).

John of GA 5:21PM July 15, 2011

B. Vergara of FL you seem to have some insight on this thanks for your comments.

Bee of VA 3:52AM July 11, 2011

We are looking at new construction. Why am I finding that they want to negotiate price on a house that has'nt even been built yet? They gave us the "we were pre planning to build this house at a total price of $#+#%^^^ " bull crap. COME ON DUDE!!! These sellers/ builders are so desperate for sales these days that they will try anything. Any help on negotiating price for New construction?????

Bee of VA 3:41AM July 11, 2011