Buy a Home: Negotiate and Close
We discuss your offer with you first. We don't send it to the seller until you're ready.
Then we negotiate into the night on your behalf. Because Redfin agents earn a customer satisfaction bonus, not a traditional commission, they're motivated to get you the best deal or tell you to walk from a bad deal. Our agents are good at what they do: MLS data shows Redfin customers get a negotiating advantage.
"From the initial offer to the home inspection and all the way to the closing, Redfin made us feel comfortable and at ease."
Deyano and Nikki Manco, Ashland, MA
After you send us an offer, you and your Redfin Direct Agent work together to reach agreement with the seller. While every offer is different, a typical process looks like this:
- First, your Redfin Direct Agent makes sure the listing is still available, but tells them nothing of your offer or your terms.
- Next, we call you to go over everything in the offer, including any contingencies. At this point, you may want to ask us to go over your CMA to help you calibrate your opening price.
- Once you feel comfortable with the offer, we print it and ask you to sign it.
- We send the offer to the seller's agent. You'll typically know within a couple of hours of signing the offer whether the seller wants to negotiate with you; sometimes the seller or the seller's agent waits until the next day to respond.
- In a typical negotiation, the seller's agent will call your Redfin Direct Agent to ask for a set of concessions, such as a higher price or a different close date, which we will in turn discuss with you. Often such requests are accompanied by modifications to the original offer, marked in ink on the original documents and then faxed back to us; this modified offer is known as a counter-offer.
- Once you and the seller agree on a final set of terms, both parties will sign the same offer documents. This is known as mutual acceptance.
- Upon reaching mutual acceptance, you have to come up with the earnest money specified in the offer, to ensure that you uphold your end of the deal. The earnest money is held in escrow, or in some states, by the listing agent. In most places, you have two business days after mutual acceptance to come up with the earnest money, so you shouldn't make an offer without some cash on hand.
- After mutual acceptance, your Transaction Coordinator will help you deposit your earnest money with an escrow company typically chosen by the seller or with the listing agent, and begin the process of coordinating an inspection of the property. The Transaction Coordinator will also make sure the title of the property is clear, without any arguments over where the property's border is, or whether the IRS has a claim on the seller's house.
What you'll need:
- Access to a fax machine.
- Phone or email access to review counter-offers with your agent. There is usually a deadline on these.
- Some patience. Every transaction is different, and negotiations are unpredictable. Your Redfin Direct Agent is an experienced negotiator and will take all reasonable action to make the process go smoothly.
Test Drive the Offer Wizard
Interested in checking out the Offer Wizard without submitting an offer? Click "Test Drive" and we'll take you to the Offer Wizard. Choose any property and click the Test Drive the Offer Wizard button at the bottom of the page. You'll be able to walk through all the questions in the Offer Wizard without ever submitting the offer to an agent. Test Drive
