The Art of Negotiation

Top Five Bright Ideas on Negotiation

1. If you can convince sellers on faxed signatures from out of town buyers. If you can't, build in sufficient time into the acceptance schedule for overnight deliveries.

2. When negotiating with a couple, don't assume who the decision make is based on who dominates the discussion.

3. Keep the end result in mind. If sellers balk at certain terms in a buyers' offer, remind them how relieved they will feel when the stressful process of selling a house is over and they can get on with their lives or move to their new home.

4. If buyers won't respond to a counteroffer realistically, use a reverse strategy of telling them that they should forget about the house. If they really want the house, this may get them to budge. -Danielle Kennedy International Speakers Bureau, Dallas.

5. Keep the earnest money deposit in your hand when you are telling the sellers about the offer. -Bob Deutsch, Listings and Sales Success, Real Estate Education Company, 1993.