The 3 Biggest Deal Killers When Selling Your Home (And How to Avoid Them)

If you’re selling your home yourself, or even just thinking about it, there are three moments in every deal where you are most likely to lose thousands… maybe even tens of thousands of dollars.

And the worst part? Most sellers don’t even realize it’s happening until it’s too late.

We’ve sold nearly 3,000 homes, and we see this play out over and over again with DIY sellers.

The deal looks fine at first, but little by little, money starts leaking out and by the time you get to closing, you’ve given away more than you ever saved.

The good news? These moments are predictable and avoidable. Let’s walk through the 3 biggest deal killers and how to protect your bottom line.

Deal Killer #1: The Initial Offer

This is where most home sellers leave money on the table. Especially if you’ve had a hard time getting an offer to come through, the excitement of getting one sometimes overweighs the practicality of negotiating it.

Side note: if it’s been months on the market and you finally have a decent offer, tread carefully with negotiations because the market is clearly telling you it’s not ready to give you everything you want right now. (think back to our favorite time v. money equation)

While you’re evaluating the initial offer remember that it isn’t just about price, you also need to weigh:

• Terms
• Protections
• Loopholes
• Buyer escape routes

We routinely see 15–20 areas in a typical offer that could cost you money now or come back and eat at your bottom line later. Avoid this by looking closely at:

• Inspection timelines
• Financing strength (verify with the lender)
• Earnest Money
• Contract loopholes
• Title Company (evaluate on the 3 S’s: Service, Security, and Savings)

Here’s how to respond to get the negotiating started in your favor:

“Got it, thanks. I’ll read it over and let you know if I have any questions. By the way, is there room here or is this their final offer?”

Bonus: this is what you’ll send to the lender who wrote their pre-approval letter to make sure the buyer is legit: “I recieved a pre-approval from you for [buyer]. They made an offer on my home, can you confirm this is still valid and covers their offered price of [offer price]?”

The bottome line: A great offer price doesn’t guarantee a great outcome

Deal Killer #2: The Inspection

This is where fear of the outcome and the unknown costs sellers thousands of dollars unnecessarily. Here’s what happens: you get under contract so your showings stop. At the same time any buyer remorse on their end is at an all time high as an inspector points out every ‘issue’ no matter how big or small. Now you both are panicking about starting over again. This is obviously not a great combination.

So what do a lot of sellers do? The roll over and give in. They don’t want to face the market again, they worry they won’t get another buyer, and they’re afraid of their home being stigmatized when it comes back on the market after inspections. Lucky for you, we have tons of resources to help you avoid this before you sell. Checkout this podcast on dealing with insane inspection reports and this one will take the fear out of ‘starting over’.

The Truth Most Sellers Miss

• The buyer cannot force you to agree to anything
• That inspection list is just a starting point
• Most requests are negotiations and not requirements

What Smart Sellers Do

• Ignore non-material issues (cosmetic, known conditions, etc.)
• Push back on items already disclosed
• Focus only on real defects (major home systems and items you need to fix and/or disclose to the next buyer)
• Counter aggressively (don’t accept the first ask)

The bottom line: A long inspection report doesn’t always mean your deal is falling apart, but Fear makes sellers act fast and acting fast costs money. This is one of the biggest reasons having a pro in your corner matters. Check out our listing packages or book a call with us to see how you can get an expereinced Realtor in your corner without paying a 6% commission.

Deal Killer #3: The Appraisal

Picture It:

You made it through inspections.
You’re almost at the finish line.

Then the appraisal comes in $20,000 below the agreed upon purchase price. Not a good day.

This is the hardest one for sellers to overcome because it catches most people completely off guard, plus they are notoriously difficult ot overturn. Don’t freak out just yet! After all, the purpose of this post is to teach you how to save your bottom line. Let’s break it down:

What Goes Wrong

• Sellers assume they have to lower the price
• Most don’t know they have options
• Some sellers just sign whatever is sent over

Here’s the reality about low appraisals:

• You do NOT have to accept a low appraisal
• You can renegotiate with the buyer to cover the gap (think: buyer brings extra cash, cut seller expenses like credits and commissions, etc.)
• You (and the buyer) can submit an appeal to the lender
• You can restructure the deal
• The buyer can request and pay for a second appraisal opinion (though this is rarely successful)
• You can always walk away. Appraisals do not stick with your home, they are one and done (except for FHA).

What Smart Sellers Do

1. Stop everything and let time work in their favor.
2. Use your leverage: the buyer doesn’t want to start over, the agent wants their commissions, the lender gets paid when this deal closes. They don’t want to lose it.
3. Rework the deal to reduce any costs to you (commissions, concessions, seller credit, title fees, etc.)

The bottom line: You don’t care what the house actually sells for – you care what you walk away with. Focus on your bottom line.

Bonus: Listen to the Talking Realy Podcast episode How to Handle a Low Appraisal (Without Losing Your Deal or Your Mind)

Don’t Let These Moments Cost You Thousands

Now you know the 3 moments (offer, inspections, and appraisal) that costs sellers the majority of their bottom line. Armed with this knowledge you can sell your home without leaving money on the table during the offer, giving in to every demand during inspections, and navigate a low appraisal without losing thousands of dollars.

If the buyer damages the property, gets injured, causes a fire, or has belongings stolen while taking early posession then your insurance may not cover it. Since it’s not a normal owner-occupied situation or a formal rental with a lease agreement your insurance most likely will use that as a reason not to pay claims.

Want Professional Support Without Paying 6%?

You don’t have to choose between doing it all yourself or paying an agent 6% of your home’s value.

We offer full-service support for a flat fee so you can keep control of your home sale, keep thousands of dollars in your pocket right away, have a pro in your corner when it matters most. List with us or book a free, no-obligation strategy call to learn how we can help you sell and keep more of your money at closing.

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