At the stage where you have chosen the house you want to buy from the available Tampa homes for sale, you're now ready to make a purchase offer and determine how much you should offer the seller. Your real estate agent will most likely be diffident to give you a price. But even though this is the case, you can still ask the assistance of your agent when it comes to gathering vital information that may help you find out the best price you can offer for the house.

It can be very useful if you only knew the reason behind the selling of the property; however, this can be close to impossible for as listing agents generally do not give out this kind of information. Because of this, it would be vital if you just gather the details that you can get that can help you in making a decision regarding the price you'll offer. Besides, it would be reckless if you just offer any price that pops into your head without considering all the factors involved.

First of all, you should know the marketplace whether it is hot, cold, or just neutral; this may have a big effect on the home's price. If the house is in a seller's market, you must make your offer as appealing as possible as the seller is likely to get many offers. Your offer may not even be considered in the first place if it's below the listed price. On the other hand, if you are making an offer in a buyer's market, there will be less competition because the number of buyers is not that big so sellers are more likely to consider any offers.

You should also determine the price paid for the home when the seller bought it, even though it does not have that much impact on the present market, but it can still be useful for you. You should remember that the asking price must be near the seller's purchase price given that the house had been bought in a depressed market a couple of years ago and there's little appreciation since that time. It is possible that you will be unable to determine the condition of the property when it was bought by the seller and if it is extenuating so you may raise the price you'll offer due to remodeling improvements and appreciation.

Another thing you should find out is the mortgage balance of the seller. This can have an influence in his actions when it comes to selling the house. For example, if his mortgage balance is tremendously high and no one lives in the house, you may suppose that he's paying on two homes and that he's making payments out-of-pocket. In case that he has a low balance, it's possible that he can manage to pay for it so he may be willing to wait a bit longer to acquire a list price; he's probably not that eager to sell the property immediately. Moreover, a seller might not accept a purchase offer if it is below the mortgage and closing costs, unless he's willing to partake in a short sale and he's in default.

Here's a tip: you should not get emotionally attached to a home until your offer has been accepted by the seller. Be prepared to receive a counter offer. You should also have other houses in mind so in case your offer gets rejected, you still have options in Tampa real estate.