Winning the Bidding War for your Alaskan Dream Home – Tips to Success
You’ve done it, you’ve finally found your Alaskan dream home. It’s located in the perfect part of the Anchorage, Eagle River, Wasilla and the Mat-Su Valley, and it’s everything that you’ve been looking for. The problem? So have Mr. and Mrs. Jones, and now you find yourself in a bidding war! How do you win the bidding war and secure your dream home?
Tip 1 – Show your love
A strategy that has gained increased popularity is to pen a ‘love letter’ to the seller letting them know how much you love and appreciate their property, and how perfect it is for your family. Your agent will let you know if there are any issues with writing a letter as sometimes there are rules around fair housing laws. A letter could be just what you needed to help the seller to create a connection with you, and get your foot in the door, literally.
Tip 2 – Get Pre-Approved
An important step of homebuying in the Alaskan real estate market is successfully getting pre-approved for a mortgage. Having a pre-approval helps you to stand out as a qualified buyer and gives you the ability to jump quickly on an available home. Pre-approval requires lenders to have access to documentation such as bank statements, pay stubs and tax returns in order to review your income, assets and credit scores. Based upon your financial health they will determine the amount of money you qualify to borrow.
Tip 3 – Try to limit contingencies
Contingencies can often be roadblocks to a smooth sale in the sellers’ eyes. Don’t go crazy and allow yourself to wave contingencies that could potentially put you in financial danger. Don’t be too concerned if you can’t waive all contingencies, another way to strengthen your offer is by taking on more inspection-related responsibilities. If you are willing to take on repairs and issues this could move, you to the top of the list.
Tip 4 – Don’t let your emotions take over
This is probably the hardest one of them all. Once you’ve found your Alaskan dream home it can be hard to put your emotions aside, but if you get your hopes up it can lead to a devastating drop when things don’t work out in your favor. Keep your emotions in check and work toward securing your dream home as realistically as possible.
Finding your dream home in the Anchorage, Eagle River, Wasilla and the Mat-Su Valley is a wonderful journey, and we would love to help you along the way. We can help you successfully navigating the buying and selling process as smoothly as possible. Contact us today to see how we can help!
