Negotiating a Deal on your Home

Buyers will often present their offer without the particulars of their subjects and conditions set. These will become part of the negotiating process. Generally the offer begins with the price and everything else is negotiated to satisfy that price.

In the negotiating process the seller states which items in the home stay and which are not included in the price. These would include things like appliances or any special features the seller wishes to keep, such as a special light fixture. These items must be declared in writing in the sales contract to avoid problems after the closing date. If no concessions were made for a particular item then the buyer would have the right to assume it was supposed to stay with the home.

Subjects, which come in the form of an Addendum to the purchase and sale contract, will have a time frame in which they are to be completed. The buyer will often include a "subject to a mortgage being made available". This will often include mortgage details such as maximum interest rate, amortization and term. Other subjects may include a satisfactory inspection from a qualified inspector, obtaining satisfactory residential home insurance, receiving any pertinent documents related to the property (such as, Municipal Building Inspection reports if there was a known problem in the past, strata title properties will require obtaining strata by-laws and minutes)

The conditions of these subjects need to be met by an agreed to date. To simplify things set the date for all conditions to be the same, typically 2 to 3 weeks from the offer acceptance date are sufficient.

The closing date is an important matter to negotiate. The closing date is the date you must move out of the home and the new owner gains possession. A favorable closing date must be agreed to to satisfy both parties. If the buyer insists on a very quick closing date (such as 2 weeks, or less) then you should ask for more money in the sale to compensate for this inconvenience.

The finalized deal that you sign acceptance to should be a deal both parties are happy with. The contract should be reviewed by your lawyer or notary to ensure everything is as it should be. And now you should be happy you have sold your home :)

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