3 top tips from a leading Buyer’s Agency

Anyone who has bought a property knows it requires skillful negotiation.

As buyers agents, our role is to advocate solely for the buyer - to ensure they get access to the best properties, at the best price, with the least amount of stress & competition.

But that’s just where the process starts.

Where buyers' agents really shine is their ability to negotiate. Negotiation is often thought of as confrontational or a run-in between buyer and seller. And in the traditional model of real estate agent versus buyer, that’s often the case. But as buyers’ agents, we know the most successful negotiators are those that bring all parties to the table and keep them there no matter how hard the conversations may be.

At Webb & Co., we buy more than 20 properties per year, every year. That’s an average of 2 per month, each with a tailored strategy that puts our clients clearly ahead of fierce buying competition.

Here are our 3 top negotiation tips for purchasing property.

Understanding Context:

A successful negotiation requires as much context as possible.

Whether the owners are selling due to a divorce, downsizing, upsizing, or for health reasons, knowing this information plays a large role in how negotiations are handled, and how offers are made. Usually most general buyers will not be privy to this level of detailed intelligence.But as buyer’s agents, it's our job to extract as much critical information and context as possible to ensure our clients have a winning edge. In addition, the motivation of the selling agent is a critical piece of context that can make or break a purchase. We know whether the agent is a high-volume seller who loves putting a deal together, or a low-volume agent who is more concerned about getting the best price. Both scenarios require very different strategies for negotiating and securing a home.

Knowing what to say, and what not to say:

A common mistake we see traditional buyers making is not communicating enough with agents when they have interest in a property. Or they over-communicate and divulge too much information which is then used against them.When expressing interest, it’s critical to make yourself known so you don’t miss an opportunity to buy the property.However, knowing the right time to show your cards in terms of budget & interest is critical. 

Timing is everything:

They say that time kills deals, but it can also bring them together. 

Knowing when the best time to make an offer is crucial to controlling buyer competition. As buyer’s agents, our job is to minimise the time between making an offer and exchanging unconditionally on the property, to mitigate buyer competition or external setbacks.This approach has seen us secure highly sought after properties time and time again with minimal to no competition. When an offer is made on a property, many buyers experience a fear of missing out, and emotions take over. This is a dangerous cocktail for increasing competition and potentially paying over market value or missing out altogether.

Here’s a good example. 

We recently found the perfect Upper North Shore home for an upsizing family. We put in a strategic offer, well within the client’s budget to secure the deal. After a couple of hours of negotiating, our client rang as they were nervous, suggesting we cave in and increase our offer just to get the deal done. But having almost 20 years of property-buying experience, we knew from the context our offer was compelling, and had a very good chance of being accepted. Which it was, saving our client up to $150,000 - which they were more than willing to offer. Our extensive experience negotiating with Sydney real estate agents allows our clients to leverage our skills and knowledge to achieve incredible results.

In every deal, we save our clients up to hundreds of thousands of dollars that they otherwise would have lost, taking back control in the negotiation & ensuring they put their best foot forward in the property market.

So if you would like to get ahead of the competition and secure your dream home at the best price, please get in touch.