Once you have found your dream home, you need to do all that you can to ensure that it becomes yours. This means that you need to draft a strong real estate offer letter to state your intention and sway the seller to choose you over other prospective buyers. Here are a few tips to keep in mind as you draft this important letter.

Remember the Point of the Letter

A real estate offer letter is your opportunity to connect with the seller so that they choose you for their home. While you want the letter to state the facts and offer an objective overview of your qualifications to purchase the home, it should also encompass an element of emotion. Remember that many sellers have a strong emotional connection to the home they are selling. Appealing to more than just their financial senses will increase the odds that they develop a strong connection with you.

While it may be tempting to include as much information as you can to sway the seller to consider your offer, it is more important to keep it short and sweet. The letter should not exceed one page in length. A few well-written paragraphs are ideal.

Begin With a Formal Greeting

You should start your letter with a formal greeting. It is important to address the seller by their name. This will make your letter more personal. First impressions count, making it vital that you start your letter on a strong note.

This is also a good place to share personal details about yourself. Perhaps you want to include a little bit of information about your family, your job, or anything that might demonstrate to the seller that there are real people behind the offer letter. It is harder for the seller to ignore a personal story. Your job is to paint a picture that puts you in a positive light.

Flatter the Seller

Now is the time to flatter the seller and tell them why you want to call their house your own home. Tell them about something in particular that you love about the home or why it will be a good fit for your family. For example, you could say, "My family is excited to use your bonus room as a playroom for our young children."

If the seller identifies with you and your family personally, they will be more likely to want to see you in their home. This may also translate into an easier negotiation process down the road. The bottom line is that the seller should feel good about selling their home to a buyer who will love it as much as they did.

Include Financial Details

Once you have established that personal connection with the seller and portrayed yourself as someone who will take care of their home, it is time to get into the financial details of the transaction. A seller wants to know that this is going to be a smooth transaction process. This means you want to highlight your mortgage pre-approval letter and other details about how you plan to pay for the house.

This is also the place to discuss your potential earnest money deposit. Your realtor is likely a good resource to make sure that you have all of the financial details correct.

Wrap it up by offering a thank you for the opportunity to see the home and for considering your offer.

What Not to Include

In addition to everything that you want to ensure your letter portrays, you also need to be purposeful about avoiding certain topics and phrases. You never want to outline changes that you may make to the home if your offer is accepted. For example, a seller might be offended if you say that you are going to change the paint colors inside the home.

In general, you need to keep the letter positive and avoid any type of negative words. Lastly, be careful to not convey an air of desperation to get into the house. You do not want to hint that you are willing to pay more for your offer to be accepted.

A strong real estate offer letter will set you apart from other buyers, giving you the edge in putting yourself in your dream home.