With mortgage rates rising, buyers in the San Francisc Bay Area real estate market have become cautious. The crazy Seller's market has begun to transform into more balanced market. If at this time, you have a house that you have to sell, but only received a lowball offer that you weren't satisfied with, you may wonder what should you do. In this article, I will give you some advice on how to handle any lowball offers.

Before we move to the advice part, let's make it clear: what is a low-ball offer? How low an offer is considered a low ball offer? Different sellers may have different expectations. Some sellers think that a price lower than the listing price is considered a low ball offer, while others would take that as a price which is 10%-20% lower.

To put it simply, when the price of an offer makes you feel offended and you don't want to reply, it is almost considered a low ball offer. There may be several reasons for a buyer to make a lowball offer. For example, they think the listing price is too high, or they think the house needs too many repairs, or they refer to the valuation of Redfin estimate or Zestmate, or they just have the habit of bargaining, or want to test the waters.

After you have a general understanding of the psychology of why buyers making low ball offers, my first advice to youis not to let emotions affect your business decisions.

Your beloved house is on the market, but you receive an offer that is lower than the listing price. This is really frustrating. You may feel very angry and don't bother to pay attention to the offer. In fact, the most important thing at this time is to calm down. Don't be immersed in complaints about the buyer. Instead, think about what should you do next?

My next advice to you is to read the entire offer carefully. In addition to the price, there are also some terms that are more important, for example, the closing date and the buyer's payment method, i.e. all cash or loan? If it is all by cash, does the bank statement show the fund? If a loan is needed, how much is the down payment? Have you seen any proof of funds for the down payment and closing cost? Another example is whether there are contingencies in the offer. There are three contingencies included in a standard agreement, that are loan contingency, appraisal contingency and inspection contingency. You have to make sure what contingency is in your offer. Only by reading the entire offer calmly and carefully can you proceed to the next step better.

This next step is crucial, and my advice to you is to work fully with your agent to negotiate with the buyer.

Even a lowball offer shows that someone is willing to buy, so negotiation is a better way to deal with it than ignoring it.

Before negotiating, you must confirm with your family that you have a unified determination to sell the house, so that you will have a firm attitude during the negotiation; during the negotiation process, your agent is your partner and a reliable helper to help you complete your house selling transaction. Your agent will help you to negotiate with the buyer's agent, and draft a counter offer for you. As a professional and responsible agent, I will present my seller all the information I have learned, and at the same time give them some professional and reasonable suggestions, and try my best to win for them.

You, as the boss, should comprehensively consider various factors, such as holding costs, opportunity costs, family plans, buyer concessions, etc. You can add some flexibility appropriately so that the house can be sold and you can make the transaction smoothly. The next chapter of your life will be wonderful.

The above are my three suggestions for you when facing a low ball offer. Of course, not every lowball offer can lead to a satisfactory result, but at least you can try your best. Maybe during the negotiation process, you will receive another offer you love.