Six Unexpected Requests You Can Make When Negotiating a Home
If you’ve ever looked for a home, you know it can be a long and labor-intensive process . While much of this time is spent finding the right home, an even larger portion of this time is spent negotiating.
Most people focus on the price of the home, and that makes sense—it’s a huge purchase for most people, so getting the price right is critical—but there’s so much more you can negotiate. You may already know that you can (and should) ask for renovations or a finance loan if an inspection reveals problems, but it never hurts to ask for concessions or contingencies that could make your new home more attractive, comfortable and affordable in the long run. Here are six queries you should consider when purchasing your next home.
Professional cleaning
Moving is a messy business, and so is living in a house. Even the cleanest people probably don’t deep clean their homes on a regular basis, and moving furniture and appliances after they’ve sat collecting dust and dirt for years reveals a lot of dirt. If you don’t want to inherit the accumulated dirt of someone else’s life, you can ask the sellers to require a professional cleaning of the house (at their expense) before you move. This will give you one less thing to worry about.
Free Home Warranty
We all do our best to do our due diligence before purchasing a home. We walk along it, check the water pressure and wiring. We carry out a professional inspection (usually). We check the permission history to see if there were any serious problems. But people still often face major renovations after moving to a new home.
This, of course, does not mean that sellers are hiding something; The main aspects of a home may seem great until they fail. For a little peace of mind, you can ask the sellers to pay for a one-year home warranty to give you some insurance against unexpected problems. Home warranties aren’t always a good deal , but if you’re not paying for them, a warranty is a win-win.
Extended contingencies
When purchasing a home, you should probably always request protection against insect and termite damage, even if it was noted during the inspection (or disclosed by the seller) and corrected. This type of damage can sometimes be more extensive than originally thought and can take a long time to manifest. In addition, errors may reappear even if they have been resolved thoroughly.
If an infestation is discovered in the home or you have reason to suspect a threat, ask the seller to purchase a termite bond or warranty or pest control contract for a specified period of time—say, six months to a year—to insure against hidden problems.
Portion of HOA fees
If you are purchasing a home insured by a homeowners association (HOA), you may have the seller pay the first six months to a year of fees. Many people are tight on cash after buying a home, so taking a small amount toward these fees can give you a little more breathing room as you rebuild your emergency fund and manage the costs of owning a home.
Furniture, appliances or other things you want
A general rule of thumb when buying a home is that items permanently attached to the property, such as kitchen cabinets, storage sheds, landscaping or towel racks, are included in the sale unless the seller makes arrangements to take them with them. The easiest way to imagine this is to imagine lifting a house, turning it over, and shaking it. Anything not dropped is an ” accessory ” and is therefore included in the sale.
This means that other things you see, such as appliances, custom furniture or decorative items, are negotiable. If there’s an unusual dining table that’s perfect for the room it’s in, you might want to ask the seller for a price to keep it behind. It should be noted that negotiations for personal property (as opposed to real estate ) usually must be kept separate from the home construction contract, as most lenders will not allow personal property to be part of the home sale. However, you can make this part of the overall negotiations and simply enter into a separate agreement covering everything you want to keep.
Test run
Finally, are you absolutely sure that you will love this house? Will it be quiet enough for you? Will the layout work the way you think it will? If you have any doubts, ask the seller to let you stay in the house for a day or two before finalizing the sale, which is becoming increasingly common . Just one night spent in a home can give you a very clear idea of the noise level and overall comfort of the home, and spending more than a few minutes alone in the place can provide clarity on its overall suitability for your lifestyle and family.
It’s important to remember that while you can ask for almost anything when buying a home, the seller doesn’t have to agree to any of it. However, it never hurts to ask: the worst-case scenario is “no.”