Have you ever heard of the spreadsheet guy? It is today's modern buyer. He is highly educated, highly motivated, and beyond analytical. This is the guy that goes out to look at homes with his laptop or iPad in hand. On it is a spreadsheet that could choke a horse. This type of person would have already broken down every home for sale in the neighborhood he is interested in and then the nearby neighborhoods as well. He'll know every home address for sale, the beds, the baths, the square foot, lot size, age, what it previously sold for, and the most important stat of all...price per square foot. Most of the time, he will be able to quote sales trends like a chapter and verse of the Bible for the last 6 and 12 months. Once the time comes to make an offer on a house, he will pin down the sales price right down to the penny. So what's wrong with that... right?
There is nothing wrong with that. In fact, I love an educated buyer. It makes my job so much easier. The only issue we run into is that very rarely does that sale pan out just like the spreadsheet guy planned. All the home work, studying and analyzing is great, but at the end of the day, the sale boils down to one thing, "What is a seller willing to sell for and what is a buyer willing to pay?" I see the spreadsheet guys submitting offer after offer on properties. Usually, after the third or fourth offer and there is and still no deal, they start to get frustrated. They wonder why the sellers can't see or understand the data. They wonder what their agents are doing wrong and they wonder why they can't get the house they want at the price they want to pay.
Just about this time, their better half steps up and says, "Ok, enough of the low offers. I want a house and I want this process to be over. I am tired of looking at homes." They make a more reasonable offer on the next house. There is some dialogue between the buyer and seller and then there is a compromise. The house is under contract, it closes and then they move in.
The key to remember for the spreadsheet buyer is not who won, lost, or who got the best deal. It's simply this: Did you get the house you really like, will really enjoy, be very happy in, and did you get it for a fair price? The deal always comes down to what a seller is willing to sell for and what is a buyer willing to pay. Make the compromise.
Dan Polimino is a Realtor with Fuller Sotheby's International Realty. He can be reached at DPolimino@fullerproperties.com and www.coloradodreamhouse.com/denverpost
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