There are numerous reasons that help to cultivate bidding wars. One of the most common is when the market has fewer homes than interested buyers. This increased competition doesn't mean that you can't get the Home of your dreams. Winning a bidding war is easy when armed with these helpful tips:

  • Being prepared is the best strategy when trying to win a bidding war. This includes having your financing ready. Sellers are more likely to accept an offer that is backed by a preapproval letter. Since preapproval can take a while, having accomplished that step is appealing to the seller.
  • Be sure to avoid making lowball offers. In the case of a bidding war, low offers aren't considered to be serious offers and are rejected immediately. If the home is out of your price range, keep it off of your list. In a competitive market, placing an offer on a home that is out of your range only wastes time and leads to disappointment.
  • Money isn't the only thing that makes an impression during a bidding war. Flexibility can go a long way towards having your offer selected. That flexibility can be shown by offering the buyers preferred move-out date or by the willingness to waive the small items that come up during an inspection.
  • While you may not be able to offer much more than the asking price of the home, using your cash creatively can help your bid win. This could be offering more earnest money than required or offering a larger down payment that necessary. Both of those items can be appealing to sellers.

While a bidding war is a dream for a seller, it can be a nightmare for the buyers involved. Winning a bidding war seems like a daunting task, but is actually something that is very possible when the buyers go in with all of the necessary information.