Offer Cover Letters: Seller Types and Desires

There are several elements that may go into an offer you make on a home, and one of these that’s generally optional is known as a cover letter. Serving as a way to both help the seller focus on the details of your offer plus personalize it in a few special ways, cover letters may not always be needed, but often provide some benefits for the buyers and their agents crafting them.

At Primary Residential Mortgage, we’re here to help our clients with numerous home loan types and fantastic mortgage rates, and we also regularly assist clients in making the best possible offer – a process that sometimes includes a cover letter. What should you know about home sellers and cover letters, and how can you go about personalizing a cover letter to make it as impactful as possible? This two-part blog series will go into this and other factors.

Don’t Make Assumptions

For some reason, there are certain buyers or even real estate agents out there who tend to make too many assumptions about the sellers they’re dealing with. They assume that all sellers will automatically accept the highest offer price no matter what, and that all sellers will want to close immediately – that is, there tends to be an assumption that all sellers will simply look at things from a data-centric point of view, with little consideration for anything else.

Simply put, while this is sometimes true, it isn’t always. Some sellers will have other motivations in addition to the raw dollars and cents. And in both these situations, there are ways you can utilize a cover letter to your benefit. Our next couple sections will go over the two broad “types” of sellers.

Fact-Based Sellers

These are the sellers we referred to above, the sort who are focused primarily or exclusively on the numbers involved. They want the best possible value for their home no matter what, and will often be focused on other details like a fast closing.

For these sellers, the details of your offer are what matter. You may utilize a cover letter to spell these out in simple terms, a way to show the seller you respect their time.

People-Based Sellers

These sellers, on the other hand, are considering factors beyond raw price. While the offer number will certainly play some role for these sellers, they will also consider factors like the plans of the buyers, what the buyers plan to do with their home, or a few similar themes. They will often care about the qualities of the buyers as people, and will want to feel like they can trust them to be straightforward during the offer and negotiation process. For these sellers, infusing some personal elements into your cover letter is often a great move.

For more on cover letters on home offers, or to learn about any of our mortgage rates or home loan services, speak to the staff at Primary Residential Mortgage today.

*PRMI NMLS 3094. PRMI is an Equal Housing Lender. Some products and services may not be available in all states. Credit and collateral are subject to approval. Terms and conditions apply. Programs, rates, terms, and conditions are subject to change and are subject to borrower(s) qualification. This is not a commitment to lend. Opinions expressed are solely my own and do not express the views of my employer.