Selling and purchasing a home is stressful. It helps to get a bit of perspective of the seller and buyer mindset so you can move forward with a broader understanding to make it as smooth a transaction as possible. Lynn Norusis with the FOCUS on NoVA Real Estate team dips into the seller and buyer mindset throughout a home sale transaction.

It should not be surprising that in a negotiation or a transaction the seller is always wanting the highest price and the buyer is always wanting to get the best deal. But there is more that goes into it.

Great example, when a real estate agent is working with a seller and they are taking them through their house to try and figure out the best pricing strategy for the home, a seller is always thinking I’ve done this to the home, this is what I’ve done. I’ve added this deck. I’ve updated the bathrooms. I’ve redone the kitchen. And they are looking at all of the money they have put into the home to sell it or just to live in it in general. So they have a high-priced value of what this home is. However, what the sellers need to understand is a buyer is now coming through that home and they are taking a look at it and they are thinking, Oh my gosh need to repaint this, I need to update this bathroom. I need to do this. They are looking at all of the items they now need to do to the home in order to make it theirs.

There is always going to be that split of difference of mindset as to what a home is worth and what, in reality, someone is going to pay for it. So that is item No. 1.

Another area that we come across where there is some discrepancy between a seller versus buyer mindset is when it comes down to the negotiation. This is where a contract has already been ratified and a home inspection has been done, or sometimes you are still in the process of trying to get a contract ratified. Any portion of the negotiation to where the buyer and seller are going back and for, whether it be over the price of the home or items that need to be fixed or dealt with in a home. A seller, again, is always going to be looking at what they have already done. And especially when it comes down to home inspection items or getting certain things fixed on a home, they are going to be looking at this as something where “I don’t want to have to pay for someone else to live in my home to the standards that they want to have it.” So there needs to be a great reality balance happening there. Now a buyer is always going to be looking at a home and thinking maybe some of these items are deferred maintenance that a seller should have done to upkeep the home throughout the time they were living there.

So a buyer is looking at what standard do you need to bring this home to for me to buy it at this price and, dear seller if not, I’m going to lower the price and tell you this is not worth the money you are asking for it. Again, market value is always what somebody is willing to pay for a home. There is always going to be a seller and buyer mindset discrepancy in some fashion. It is always up to the real estate agents to have those heart-to-heart conversations with their clients to make sure everybody is on a realistic playing field, and there are times where they are not and the real estate agent needs to have a come to Jesus moment with their client to understand what they should really be striving for and what is a mindset that they need to move into to make a transaction happen.

If you have any questions about Northern Virginia real estate, reach out as we are happy to help.