Charleston’s housing market is red hot! Many buyers are facing unexpected difficulties in finding homes in their price range, and those that are have multiple bids on them. There’s been a great shift int he market from a buyer’s to seller’s market.

What does this mean for buyers. The most obvious impact will be higher home prices. Expecting to pay below list on a well priced home is a thing of the past. That’s why it’s so important to take steps and to make sure your mortgage professional takes steps to strengthen your offer.

Here are a few tips to make sure your offer stands out from the rest:

Approval Letter: Always provide an approval letter. Make sure the approval letter includes the type of financing you’re approved for including loan term, type (conventional, FHA, VA), credit score and down payment amount. However an approval letter is just not enough in this hot market.

Cover Letter: Providing a cover letter explaining your personal reasons for buying this particular house can go a long way. People are emotionally connected to their homes and have lots of great memories tied them. If they see potential for you to have those same great experiences it could help move your offer to the top of the list. Include a family photo for added effect.

DU Approval: Make sure your loan officer takes it one step further and provides a DU Approval. This approval shows your loan has been checked and approved by Fannie Mae’s underwriting system. It’s verification beyond an approval letter that your approved and it’s the closest thing to a full underwriter approval. Industry insiders know what this is and the listing agent should relay this information to the seller. Your offer will be stronger than most simply because of this.

No Seller Concessions: Don’t ask the seller to pay closing costs. Coastlend Mortgage will pay them for you with our NO CLOSING COST LOAN OPTIONS. by doing this the seller makes more money on the sale and your offer becomes more attractive.

Fast Close: Time is money, and usually sellers want to sell as soon as possible. Separate yourself from the pack with a fast closing time. Write up the offer with a 21 day close. Most banks will need 30-45 days to make the close happen. Coastlend Mortgage can make it happen in 21 days. This has a huge impact on seller decision making. In your favor of course.

Down Payment: Show proof of down payment money. Anything you can do to show you are qualified will help your cause. Think about it. If someone provides just an approval letter and you provide all of the above with a very close offer. You have a much better chance they select you. Whether it’s for sentimental reasons or because they feel you have a better chance of actually closing it doesn’t matter. The fact is doing the above will put you in a stronger position to win.

Increase Your Offer: Offering a higher price is always the best. Coastlend Mortgage can make this easier with our 5% down and NO PMI loan program. This program results in the lowest payment out of all other low down payment conventional loans. The drop in monthly payment could make it easier for you to offer a little more. For more details on this loan click here: 5% Down NO PMI