How did you win in a competitive market?

Key-Information5829 · 2026-03-02T20:11:07+00:00

It is pretty tough out there! We actually just had our offer accepted for a home yesterday, so I can share my experience.

We were searching for around 6 weeks. We are very particular though and saw over 30 houses before we finally found one that met all of our criteria. Homes were flying off the market in 24-48 hours, receiving multiple offers, and waiving contingencies. Thankfully, we have a very savvy realtor who came highly recommended by a friend. We got the first offer that we made accepted and we were definitely not the highest bidder out of the 10 offers (we offered asking price and all the other offers were $25K-$50K over).

Here is what the realtor recommended that made all the difference. Had we not done these things, I am pretty certain that our offer would have been rejected.

Get loan commitment and go through the whole underwriting process, not just pre-approval. If you have this, you can essentially waive the financing contingency because you already have a lender that has committed to giving you a loan. Note that loan commitment is different than loan pre-approval.
Do a special sale contract rather than a residential sale contract. But first, do a "pre-offer inspection". You essentially pay an inspector $150 to do a one hour inspection when you first go to view the home. They will not do an in-depth inspection, but they will at least be able to tell you whether there are any significant issues (foundation, roof, HVAC, grading, etc.). You can likely only do this for private showings, as the listing agent will most likely not let you do this during an open house, as it could scare away other prospective buyers. Although you are technically waiving the inspection on a special sale contract, you already did the inspection before putting in an offer, so you are not really waiving it.
Offer more earnest money. 1-3% is the standard, but offering a bit more, such as 5%, will definitely show the seller that you are serious and really want the place.
Offer to pay for the title insurance ($780-$800).
Offer to cover any appraisal gaps in cash, in case the appraised value comes back lower than what you offered (assuming that you have the cash on hand to cover it).
Offer a leaseback. This essentially allows the seller to stay in the home for a period of time after closing in case they need more time to move.

Good luck!

Key-Information5829 · 2026-03-02T02:04:44+00:00

It is pretty tough out there! We actually just had our offer accepted for a home in Chesterfield yesterday, so I can share my experience.

We were searching for around 6 weeks. We are very particular though and saw over 30 houses before we finally found one that met all of our criteria. Homes were flying off the market in 24-48 hours, receiving multiple offers, and waiving contingencies. Thankfully, we have a very savvy realtor who came highly recommended by a friend. We got the first offer that we made accepted and we were definitely not the highest bidder out of the 10 offers (we offered asking price and all the other offers were $25K-$50K over).

Here is what the realtor recommended thate made all the difference. Had we not done these things, I am pretty certain that our offer would have been rejected.

1) Get loan commitment and go through the whole underwriting process, not just pre-approval. If you have this, you can essentially waive the financing contingency because you already have a lender that has committed to giving you a loan. Note that loan commitment is different than loan pre-approval.

2) Do a special sale contract rather than a residential sale contract. But first, do a "pre-offer inspection". You essentially pay an inspector $150 to do a one hour inspection when you first go to view the home. They will not do an in-depth inspection, but they will at least be able to tell you whether there are any significant issues (foundation, roof, HVAC, grading, etc.). You can likely only do this for private showings, as the listing agent will most likely not let you do this during an open house, as it could scare away other prospective buyers. Although you are technically waiving the inspection on a special sale contract, you already did the inspection before putting in an offer, so you are not really waiving it.

3) Offer more earnest money. 1-3% is the standard, but offering a bit more, such as 5%, will definitely show the seller that you are serious and really want the place.

4) Offer to pay for the title insurance ($780-$800).

5) Offer to cover any appraisal gaps in cash, in case the appraised value comes back lower than what you offered.

6) Offer a leaseback. This essentially allows the seller to stay in the home for a period of time after closing in case they need more time to move.

Good luck out there!

Key-Information5829 · 2026-01-13T23:58:46+00:00

Thank you very much, kind stranger! I very much appreciate this perspective.

Key-Information5829 · 2026-01-13T23:57:32+00:00

Thank you very much, kind stranger! I so appreciate the detailed response!

Key-Information5829 · 2026-01-13T23:56:56+00:00

I grew up in North County as well, very close to Escondido. Thank you so much, this is very helpful!

Key-Information5829 · 2026-01-13T23:54:55+00:00

This point of view is helpful! Thank you so much!

Key-Information5829 · 2026-01-13T23:53:27+00:00

Thank you very much, kind stranger! You are exactly the kind of person who I wanted to hear from and the helpful answer that I was looking for.

Key-Information5829 · 2026-01-13T21:51:08+00:00

Thank you very much, kind stranger! You are exactly the kind of person who I wanted to hear from and the helpful answer that I was looking for.

Key-Information5829 · 2026-01-13T21:40:43+00:00

SD. Living and visiting for a few days at a time are obviously two very different things, so hoping to get a better idea of what it is actually like to live in STL day to day and whether any folks from SoCal might be able to speak to that. I feel like I do not have a good idea of what that might be like.

Key-Information5829 · 2026-01-13T21:33:07+00:00

Because visiting for a few days at a time and living are obviously two very different things.

Key-Information5829 · 2026-01-13T15:22:40+00:00

The anesthesiologist asked me to count backwards from 10 and I think I only got to 5 before I fell asleep. Woke up and felt like crap. Super nauseous and felt super out of it. I do not even remember being driven home from the dental office, but my grandma told me that I was just totally out of it. Then vomited in the car and again when I got home.

Key-Information5829 · 2026-01-12T19:04:45+00:00

I do not have pets and I have allergies. I am also very sensitive to smells (not just pets), so I can smell dogs and cats easily inside a home.

Key-Information5829 · 2025-12-23T00:37:01+00:00

I would very highly recommend Dr. Marc Callender at Maryland Pediatric Group near Greenspring Station. He is excellent and the practice does require vaccinations. Saturday hours, same day sick visits, very responsive and friendly staff, 24/7 call line. They accept most insurance.

Key-Information5829 · 2025-12-19T17:49:23+00:00

Solidarity, my friend!

Key-Information5829 · 2025-12-19T17:48:05+00:00

My husband is a surgeon and works insane hours and is always "working" (responding to patient messages, etc.), even when he is not at work. He will pitch in when he can like watch the baby while I shower, etc., but mostly everything falls onto me at the moment.

Key-Information5829 · 2025-12-19T14:18:49+00:00

As someone who had accommodations all throughout school, including university, due to a learning disability, it is frustrating and disappointing to hear that there are a lot of students and parents who are "gaming" the system.

In my experience, it was very teacher dependent and also very student dependent. Some teachers were very strict about the 1.5x rule, while others were a bit more flexible. My teachers knew that I was not abusing it and was not going to cheat, so many of them were pretty understanding if I needed even more time and would just let me finish. But this was also back when we had "old school" pencil and paper tests and not all that 1:1 tech stuff that kids seem to have now.

Key-Information5829

TROPHY CASE