How to Win a Bidding War on a Home

If you’ve ever been in a bidding war for a house, you know how stressful it can be. Thankfully, there are ways to make it a little less intense. Here are some methods you can try to win a bidding war on a home.

Get Preapproved

When you decide on a house, get preapproved for a mortgage. Sellers like knowing that the process will move quickly given that you are already prepared with a mortgage offer.

Remove Restrictions

You can help yourself get a hot property by removing contingencies. Some sellers want to stay in the home until a specific date. Some want to move right away. If you are flexible, you’re more attractive to the seller.

Escalate

Another way to win a bidding war is to include an escalation clause on your offer. This means you will increase your offer to overcome other offers up to a certain point. For example, you could bid $400,000, with an escalation clause that says you will top any other bids up to $460,000. 

Pay for Closing

You can tempt a seller by offering to pay the house’s closing costs. A seller might appreciate not having to pay more out of pocket, and that could tilt the scales toward you.

Do One Thing: When bidding on a home, keep the big picture in mind. You don’t want your offer to go so high that you are struggling financially after the sale goes through.