How to negotiate the purchase of a plot?

ModernHouse 2023-07-05

If you want to negotiate the price of a property, you need to know its advantages and disadvantages.

What is the most important?
Accessibility of the plot to a public road - is there direct access? Who is responsible for maintaining the access road?
Plot development - it is best to avoid land without access to utilities.
Neighborhood – what houses are nearby? Are there any disruptive services or facilities in the area?
Orientation of the plot in relation to the cardinal directions - if the access to the plot is on its northern side, it is easiest to plan the layout of the house (entrance to the house, garage, utility rooms from the north, terrace and living room from the south, bedroom from the east).
Are there any places on the plot that would indicate that someone is constantly driving through it?
How close are schools, shops and train stations?
Talk to your immediate neighbors. Ask if there is standing water in the area after rainfall, find out about the problems, and find out what the advantages and disadvantages of living in a given area are. By the way, you will find out what kind of neighbors you will have.

Also ask your family and friends to express their opinion about a given area - it is very possible that they will point out things that you have omitted. And even if the plot looks like a dream and you're tempted to make a decision right away, go home, get some sleep, come back the next day and look at it with fresh eyes.
Remember!
A well-kept plot may tempt you with its nice appearance. However, it often turns out that plots with weeds or with a few trees to be cut down are better. Why? Very often we buy "nice plots" without checking the quality of the soil or groundwater level. The problem may appear only when digging the foundations. If the groundwater level is shallow, the cost of pouring the foundations will be twice as expensive, which will significantly increase the cost of building a house. Another aspect of plots that seem unattractive at first glance is the fact that we can often negotiate a very attractive price for such a plot.
Most people, when deciding to purchase a plot that meets their requirements, start negotiations. It is worth knowing that the first offer is usually overpriced, the seller sometimes gives an approximate price.

This is due to many factors:

  • lack of knowledge about transaction prices,
  • the desire to sell at the highest possible price,
  • incorrect valuation,
  • several owners.

Remember to offer a price lower than the offered price!

How to negotiate?
You have probably witnessed various negotiations in your life.
Some do it better, others worse. The fact that everyone has different negotiation skills is absolutely normal.

It is worth showing effectively and sometimes even exaggerating the things that bother you, e.g.:

  • no media,
  • difficult access,
  • narrow plot,
  • irregular shape,
  • lots of bushes, etc.

Another good way is to restrain your emotions - do not immediately show that you want to buy a given plot. When submitting an offer, many people use the price per square meter of space. What do you think the seller will react to? PLN 50,000 or PLN 10 per square meter is better??

You've heard of the saying that

"10% always cums"?

The psychology of round numbers also sometimes influences our decision, example:
Price: PLN 98,000, we want a reduction to PLN 90,000 and we'll take it, who knows, maybe the seller would agree to PLN 85,000 without a word?
Maybe the seller listed it at that price because he wanted to have some negotiating reserve, or maybe he listed it because someone suggested that price. Who knows, maybe the seller wants to sell the plot quickly and is willing to lower the price even below PLN 80,000.
An open mind and reasonable courage bring results in obtaining the best price offer.

You will have different negotiation options in the case of a person who has inherited something and is staying abroad, and different negotiation options with the owner who divided several hectares into small building plots and sold five of them last week. As you can guess, you will never know the seller's intentions, so it is always a safe move to offer a lower price.

Imagine that you offered the seller a very low price?
The seller grimaced and got angry.
You can always say "I was joking".
You can ask the question in a serious voice: how much will you sell it for? how much is it for?
Remember, the price can always be raised!

Someone once said that having a choice is comfort. There is something about it.
You also have to have a choice.
Showing the seller that you have to buy this plot is a very bad situation for you. Even if you really want to buy a given property, make sure that the other party does not find out about it.

This rule also works the other way round. You can say that the prices of plots in this area have gone down by 20 percent and that you have visited two others and the owners of these plots have said themselves that they are afraid of further price reductions. Be gentle in suggesting that other sellers are open to negotiations with you.

As you can see, there are many possibilities.

The general rule is to keep the conversation casual.
Remember to talk about what you like about the plot and any concerns you may have.
You can also simply ask: "How much can you reduce the price?"
Remain calm, without making any sudden proposals.
This approach has a very wide scope of action, it creates a kind of bond between people. The conversation may turn to a side track that concerns something else; for example, it may turn out that apart from selling the plot, we can do another joint business with someone.
Someone is an engineer, someone is a plumber, etc. - after all, you will be building a house.
Think of all the benefits of talking to the seller.

Everyone already knows about cash.
The cash argument - "I pay in cash" - is worth leaving until the very end.
Regardless of whether you buy a plot for PLN 100,000 or PLN 500,000, it is important that it is your conscious choice..

Another important thing is the preliminary agreement.
For successful negotiations, it is important that you confirm them with a preliminary agreement.
The contract can be written down on a piece of paper, or you can ask a trusted real estate agent for help or make an appointment with a notary..
Remember to be sure about the legal status of the property you intend to buy - check the documents!
A trusted intermediary will definitely help you with this.
You will learn how to check the plot and documents in the following articles.