Jason Frey's Montana Real Estate

6 Tips for Choosing the Best Purchase Offer for Your Home

Friday, February 25, 2011

Fielding a Lowball Purchase Offer on Your Home - Reposted by Jason Frey

By: Marcie Geffner

Published: June 10, 2010

Consider before you ignore or outright refuse a very low purchase offer for your home. A counteroffer and negotiation could turn that low purchase offer into a sale.

Check your emotions

A purchase offer, even a very low one, means someone wants to purchase your home. Unless the offer is laughably low, it deserves a cordial response, whether that’s a counteroffer or an outright rejection. Remain calm and discuss with your real estate agent the many ways you can respond to a lowball purchase offer.

Counter the purchase offer

Unless you’ve received multiple purchase offers, the best response is to counter the low offer with a price and terms you’re willing to accept. Some buyers make a low offer because they think that’s customary, they’re afraid they’ll overpay, or they want to test your limits.

A counteroffer signals that you’re willing to negotiate. One strategy for your counteroffer is to lower your price, but remove any concessions such as seller assistance with closing costs, or features such as kitchen appliances that you’d like to take with you.

Consider the terms

Price is paramount for most buyers and sellers, but it’s not the only deal point. A low purchase offer might make sense if the contingencies are reasonable, the closing date meets your needs, and the buyer is preapproved for a mortgage. Consider what terms you might change in a counteroffer to make the deal work.

Review your comps

Ask your REALTOR® whether any homes that are comparable to yours (known as “comps”) have been sold or put on the market since your home was listed for sale. If those new comps are at lower prices, you might have to lower your price to match them if you want to sell.

Consider the buyer’s comps

Buyers sometimes attach comps to a low offer to try to convince the seller to accept a lower purchase offer. Take a look at those comps. Are the homes similar to yours? If so, your asking price might be unrealistic. If not, you might want to include in your counteroffer information about those homes and your own comps that justify your asking price.

If the buyers don’t include comps to justify their low purchase offer, have your real estate agent ask the buyers’ agent for those comps.

Get the agents together

If the purchase offer is too low to counter, but you don’t have a better option, ask your real estate agent to call the buyer’s agent and try to narrow the price gap so that a counteroffer would make sense. Also, ask your real estate agent whether the buyer (or buyer’s agent) has a reputation for lowball purchase offers. If that’s the case, you might feel freer to reject the offer.

Don’t signal desperation

Buyers are sensitive to signs that a seller may be receptive to a low purchase offer. If your home is vacant or your home’s listing describes you as a “motivated” seller, you’re signaling you’re open to a low offer.

If you can remedy the situation, maybe by renting furniture or asking your agent not to mention in your home listing that you’re motivated, the next purchase offer you get might be more to your liking.

More from HouseLogic

6 Reasons to Reduce Your Home Price

Marcie Geffner is a freelance reporter who has been writing about real estate, homeownership and mortgages for 20 years. She owns a ranch-style house built in 1941 and updated in the 1990s, in Los Angeles.

Monday, November 22, 2010

Bozeman Cost of Living Catching Up with National Average reposted by Jason Frey

By KARIN RONNOW, Chronicle Staff Writer

The latest Bozeman cost-of-living report puts the city almost on par with national averages for the first time in four years, according to Prospera Business Network.

The third-quarter 2010 report shows Bozeman's composite cost-of-living score at 100.4.

"The last time the city reported average consumer expenses this close to national ones was the second quarter of 2006," said Stuart Leidner, Prospera's executive director.

The decline in the cost of living here is attributed to "even lower housing costs," which dropped to 3.4 percent below the national average after years of being well above average, Leidner said.

In other categories for the third-quarter:

= Energy prices posted well below national averages, as they have all year.

= Health care costs were 4.7 percent above the national average.

= Groceries posted at 7.6 percent above the national average, "well within historic trends," Leidner said.

= The cost of miscellaneous goods (dry cleaning, veterinarian bills and movie tickets, among other things) was 2 percent above national averages, but "they have been dropping all year," he said.

= Transportation costs were about 2 percent above the national average for the second quarter in a row.

"Bozeman residents pay similar prices for transportation costs, such as gas and tire rotations, to residents in Twin Falls, Idaho, a city of similar size and composition," Leidner said.

By comparison, the cost of living in Missoula was one-tenth of a percentage point closer to the national average, at 11.3 percent, with lower housing prices compared to the national average, but higher utility and healthcare costs than in Bozeman.

The cost of living fell just below the national average in Kalispell and Laramie, Wyo., at 97.6 and 97.3 percent respectively.

Prospera, Gallatin Valley's nonprofit economic development organization, compiles its quarterly report using the ACCRA Cost of Living Index, a national comparison of prices in 314 urban areas. The index tallies the prices of more than 90,000 items in each community. In Bozeman, Prospera collects the information and submits it to ACCRA.

Comments by Jason Frey: With the cost of living in Bozeman adjusting closer to the national average coupled with our combination of outdoor amenities, the area continues to be a highly sought after destination for relocating professionals and those looking for investment or vacation properties. For more information on real estate in the Bozeman area, contact me and I will assist you in finding property that meets your specific and unique criteria.

All best,
______________________

Jason Frey

Agent

PureWest, Inc.

Tuesday, October 19, 2010

Bozeman Ranked #1 Place to "Live to Ski" from Powder Magazine by Jason Frey

The November 2010 issue of "Powder" Magazine ranks the top 20 places in North America to "Live to Ski" with Bozeman, MT ranked #1.

The magazine considered area population, the price of lift tickets and season passes, vertical feet of terrain available, annual snowfall and important things such as room rates and best bars. Powder says, "Bozeman is the perfect mix of ski town and skitropolis; it's more affordable that Jackson Hole, less crowded than Salt Lake City, and more of a real town than Whistler." They also comment that the area, "lays claim to three blue-ribbon trout waters all within an hour's drive, three distinctly different yet exceptional ski resorts in Bridger Bowl, Big Sky, and Moonlight Basin, Yellowstone National Park, and boatloads of backcountry ski opportunities."

Powder comments on the sub-community that is Montana State University as well. The magazine notes that "Montana State University and its 13,000-person enrollment give Bozeman a young, active, and open-minded community", and that "It's not uncommon for MSU teachers to cancel class when the BBC (Bridger Bowl Cloud) settles in overnight and drops a foot of cold smoke."

Of the town itself, magazine touts "Bozeman enjoys a rich music and art scene and a robust nightlife full of tasty eateries and copious watering holes." additionally noting that "this town retains a small town feel with bigger city options, and has world-class outdoors directly out the back door."

In regards to the area mountains, columnist John Stifter asks, "Do you want a big resort with over 4,000 feet of vert and ample elbow room or a grassroots, not-for-profit ski area that holds some of the rowdiest inbounds terrain in the States? Or how about an average of 400 inches between the two with some of the lightest, driest snow in th world?" He continues, "Big Sky's 11,166-foot Lone Peak offers a multitude of 2,000-foot-plus descents while a legitimate terrain park entertains others on the lower flanks of Andesite Mountain. As for Bridger, the installation of the Schlasman's lift last year only added to the mystique of the renowned Ridge. The new lift distributes skiers over a wider area, allowing for more stashes to remain stashes."

All three resorts are gearing up for the 2011 season, Bridge Bowl's opening date is slated for December 10th, Moonlight Basin's is December 11th and Big Sky Resort's on November 25th snow conditions permitting.

For information on Bozeman area real estate, contact Jason Frey.

All photos courtesy of www.bridgerbowl.com

All best,
______________________

Jason Frey

Agent

PureWest, Inc.

406-579-4582

Friday, September 17, 2010

Homebuyer tax credit: 950,000 must repay - Reposted by Jason Frey

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- Nearly half of all Americans who claimed the first-time homebuyer tax credit on their 2009 tax returns will have to repay the government.

According to a report from the Inspector General for Tax Administration, released to the public Thursday, about 950,000 of the nearly 1.8 million Americans who claimed the tax credit on their 2009 tax returns will have to return the money.

The confusion comes because homebuyers were eligible for two different credits, depending on when their homes were purchased.

Those who bought properties during 2008 were to deduct, dollar for dollar, up to 10% of the home's purchase price or $7,500, whichever was less. The catch: The money was a no-interest loan that had to be repaid within 15 years.

Had they waited to buy until 2009, they could have gotten a much sweeter deal. Congress extended the credit and made it a refund rather than a loan.

Now, the IRS is developing a strategy for separating the 2009 taxpayers who are required to repay the credit from those who are not.

A review by the Inspector General earlier this year found that the IRS could not easily distinguish between home purchases made in 2008 and 2009. That heightened concerns that some claims could be erroneous or even fraudulent, that buyers could, for example, claim their purchase came later than it actually occurred.

Thursday's release reported that 73,000 claims, more than 4% of the 1.8 million homebuyers who received the credit, had incorrect purchase dates recorded by the IRS.

Some of the inaccuracies counted against the taxpayers, Nearly 60,000 were listed as purchasing in 2008 (meaning they had to repay the credit) or had no purchase dates at all, rather than their correct 2009 purchase dates, which would free them of the obligation to pay it back.

It is also taking a look at all those deceased taxpayers who received credits.

The inspector general reported that 1,326 single people listed as dead by the Social Security Administration claimed more than $10 million in credits. The IRS threw out 528 of those 1,326 claims, saving $4 million.

All best,
______________________

Jason Frey

Agent

PureWest, Inc.

A Christie’s Great Estates Affiliate

Bozeman, Montana 59715