Featuring real estate articles and information to help real estate buyers and sellers. The Nest features writings from Georges Benoliel and other real estate professionals. Georges is the Co-Founder of NestApple and has been working as an active real estate investor for over a decade.
Purchasing a home in NYC can be tough. How to make an offer on a home? Our guide reveals insider tips for buyers, from market analysis to strategic offers, helping you secure your dream apartment for less. Making an offer on a house in NYC is straightforward. You need to email the seller or listing agent and include the following documents:
In this article, we will explain in detail how to make an offer on a house in NYC. We will outline additional items you can include in your email to enhance the credibility of your offer.
Making an offer isn’t just about tossing out a number; it’s about building a compelling case. An experienced agent will help you craft an offer that is both attractive to the seller and financially sound for you.
Typically, the elements of the offer itself are pretty basic. These include price, expected closing date, the amount of the broker’s commission, the percent of the purchase price that will be financed through a mortgage, and whether you are asking for a mortgage contingency and/or a funding contingency.
Less commonly, the offer may include terms such as the right to take possession before closing and to pay rent to the seller. Inspection contingencies, which allow buyers to walk away from contracts with their deposits, are uncommon in NYC, but most sellers will agree to an offer that specifies “inspection prior to signing.”
That means the seller will allow the buyer to have the apartment inspected before signing the contract, giving the buyer room to walk away if an insurmountable problem arises.
This standardized personal financial statement is used by real estate agents in New York City. It provides a summary of the buyer’s finances, detailing their income, assets, and liabilities. 
You must include this form if you are financing your purchase. Sometimes listing agents request it even if you are paying cash. You can download a REBNY Financial Statement Template here.
To submit an offer for a property, especially if you plan to obtain a mortgage or loan, it is essential to have specific documentation ready.
The listing agent will require proof that a reputable financial institution has partially reviewed your application and granted you an initial loan or mortgage preapproval.
It’s essential to understand the difference between a prequalification letter and a pre-approval letter. The pre-approval letter carries more weight and should be included with any offer letter you submit.
This document is typically required only for all-cash buyers and may include a bank or investment account statement that demonstrates sufficient funds to complete the purchase. Providing proof of funds can also reassure the seller that you are serious about buying, even if you are financing the purchase with a loan. You can black out any sensitive account numbers for privacy.
The most common contingency you will encounter in NYC is the mortgage or financing contingency. This contingency allows buyers to withdraw from a signed contract if they are unable to obtain a lender commitment within a specified timeframe.
At this stage, it’s sufficient to request a financing or mortgage contingency without providing further details.
It’s essential to consider the timing of your closing date, especially if your apartment lease is expiring soon or if you’re coordinating a 1031 exchange. However, you also have the option not to include this information in your offer.
To make your offer more appealing to the seller, consider stating that you are flexible regarding the closing date.
It’s standard practice to say how much you will be putting down, even if you’re not sure yet at this early stage. You can always say that you’re able to put up to a certain percent or dollar amount down, even if you end up putting down a smaller down payment.
You cannot submit an offer without including an offer price, as it is the most critical element of the offer email. This information is typically at the beginning of the email. If your offer price is equal to or greater than the asking price, this fact is often emphasized by highlighting it in bold within the offer email.
While it’s not mandatory to include the buyer’s attorney’s contact information at the offer stage, it can be beneficial if you have already chosen a lawyer.
Providing this information demonstrates your seriousness and shows that your lawyer is prepared to review the contract promptly. We cover the essential questions to ask your NYC real estate attorney in this article.
If you haven’t selected an attorney yet, you can mention in your offer email that you are willing to provide the buyer’s lawyer’s contact information if needed. You can also reassure them that the buyer has an experienced real estate lawyer on standby, ready to review the contract immediately.
Although it’s not strictly necessary, it’s helpful to provide the seller with a brief introduction about yourself. You don’t need to write a lengthy biography; a paragraph or two is more than enough.
Some home buyers take the extra step of including a personal letter to the seller. This letter serves as a personalized introduction, allowing the buyers to introduce themselves. A heartfelt, personal homebuyer letter can be influential in a bidding war when other offers are similarly priced.
In New York City, real estate offers are not legally binding, regardless of the format—whether verbally, via email, or in writing. An offer becomes binding only upon execution of a signed contract.
For a buyer, a contract is binding once they have signed it and provided the required deposit.
We do not recommend making low-ball offers; it’s usually a waste of time.
Once the buyer’s attorney has sent the contract to the seller’s attorney, the seller can countersign the contract and deposit the good-faith deposit into the seller’s attorney’s escrow account at any time.
However, since the seller is the last to act, they have the option to back out of the deal at any point before countersigning the contract. This means the seller could potentially present the buyer’s signed contract to other prospective buyers in search of a higher offer.
If another buyer makes a better offer, the seller can choose to accept it and reject the initial buyer’s signed contract.
Georges has been working in Wall Street for the last 16 years trading derivatives with hedge funds. He has been an active real estate investor for over a decade. Georges graduated from HEC Business School in Paris and holds a master in Finance from ESADE Barcelona.
