Things You Can and Can’t Negotiate When Buying a Home

You probably already know you can negotiate the price of a home when making an offer to purchase, but many other things can save you time or money before you take possession. However, there are also several things you should never ask a seller for—unless you want to tank the sale. Here are four things you might want to negotiate for, and a few you should never bring up.
 

Appliances or other non-permanent items in the house 

Sometimes, sellers will itemize furnishings and personal property they plan to take with them, excluding them from the sale. But often, if you fall in love with something in the house, you can try to negotiate that into the agreement.

The typical things people put in contracts would be appliances, window coverings, a hot tub, pool equipment or patio sets. Buyers can also ask for things like the pool table, freezers, and believe it or not, livestock if it’s a rural property. Sometimes, sellers let us know that things are available.

You might want to skip asking the seller to throw in the antique dining room chandelier or other one-of-a-kind items, though. Chances are the owners will take the most valuable and sentimental items with them when they move.
 

Closing dates and leasebacks 

It’s very common for buyers to negotiate an occupancy date that works for them, regardless of what the home listing says. 

Some want a long possession time, others a short possession time or the sellers rent back the property from the buyers temporarily until the property they purchased is ready(rare but does happen).

However, if the sellers need a super quick sale because they’re leaving the province or country, don’t ask for a move-in date six months from now, or you might talk yourself right out of the deal.
 

Cleaning up and clearing out 

If you notice there is a pile of scrap metal in the backyard, or that the basement is crammed with junk, you might want to include a note in your offer that you expect the property to be cleared out before you take possession. While we can assume that people will clean out their homes or property, adding a term in the contract to make sure this happens is good practice.

With specific types of cleanings, there could be a holdback on the contract to ensure the home is cleaned to a certain standard and then that’s paid out at the end of the deal once it’s certified everything’s done properly. And while it would be great if the sellers left you a sparkling clean house when they leave, you can’t really ask them to do that.
 

Minor repairs

Asking for certain cosmetic fixes such as touching up ceiling paint after water damage was repaired or getting the sellers to replace a non-functional doorbell before you get the keys is often acceptable. So is anything that concerns the safety of the property or issues a home inspector might find.

If it’s a latent defect—something you don’t see that the inspection reveals—like a crack in the foundation, something wrong with the gas in the mechanical room, a leaking appliance, a cracked heat exchanger, or a missing hand railing on the set of stairs, you can ask for those to be repaired because they are safety issues.

You can also ask for a discount on the price if you discover the roof is in poor shape. But don’t bother asking the sellers for a complete kitchen renovation or to gut a bathroom—that won’t happen.

No matter what you want to negotiate for, your REALTOR® will help negotiate the price and contract terms on your behalf. Everyone’s home-buying experience will be different, and your negotiations will be dependent on your personal situation.