Paying More Than List Price to Buy a Home in Sacramento

When I was a kid and allowed into a grocery store with my parents, I used to beg them to let me play the fishing game. This was a contraption set up by the entrance in Applebaum’s, close to the mechanical horse, a machine with four walls of glass, filled with little toys. A fishing line with grabby-like tongs dangled over the toys, and for a nickel, you could try to grab one. Some were worth more than others. Generally, I failed, but it was fun to play because if I won, I got a toy that cost more than a nickel. The focus was on the hope of winning and not on how many nickels I lost.

Does paying more than list price to buy a home in Sacramento get your goat? Welcome to the club. I completely understand how that can bug you. To some people, it’s a totally foreign concept, and they might believe they are paying more than they have to to buy a home in Sacramento, yet I can assure they most likely are not. Because it probably comes down to a home buyer either offers over list price or a home buyer might not buy a home at all. If you think that’s discouraging, wait until I tell you that even if you offer more than list price, you probably still won’t get the home.

Why? Because the list price you offered most likely won’t be high enough or the competing buyer is utilizing better financing methods or cash. If often comes down to the numbers.

I recall a long time ago thumbing my nose at a property because the agent suggested I pay more than the seller was asking for the home. I thought she was nuts. I could not fathom forking out another $5,000 — even if it was rolled into the loan and the difference in my monthly payment was fifty bucks. As a result, I didn’t get the home. This is how most buyers learn that painful lesson. This practice still goes on in seller’s markets, and it will continue in your children’s children’s children’s seller’s markets.

Although all home buyers are ultimately responsible for choosing their own offer prices, a Sacramento real estate agent can guide and advise you. Listen to your real estate agent. If you don’t like or trust your real estate agent, hire a different agent, but don’t try to buy a home in Sacramento without a competent advocate by your side.