Price, conditions, quality of loan pre-approval.

Net price, speed of closing and contingencies that could kill the sale.

Reputation of the buyers agent!  I am well-known in my local market.  When a listing agent gets one of my offers they know one thing . . . they WILL close escrow!!  I can't waste time with buyers who can't as an Exclusive Buyers Agent!

The buyer that has been well vetted and has the highest probability of closing. 

Depends on the sellers situation. Many agents think " quick closing" makes their offer seem more attractive, but many sellers aren't interested in a quick closing. Price, terms, financing info, down payment, proof of funds if appraisal is low, etc. It's just case by case.

Jeff Dowler CRS - terms and conditions. If the buyers are willing to drop certain contingencies, better it is.

The guarantee of the sale should be most important for the seller.

Type of loan, conditions of sale and how strong their agent is at negotiations...to name just a few

As the agent for the seller, we must follow the Mailbox Rule to protect our sellers and make sure they understand it and the ramifications. The seller must not fall victim to the 'Kid in the Candy Store' Syndrome.

Highest price and short closing.

Jeff Dowler CRS Price should not be the only motivator when choosing an offer. Looks at the finer points of the offer such as terms, contingencies, etc.

Not necessarily PRICE! As we all know, u have a good idea on what the MAX price your listing would APPRAISE for.... so having SKYHIGH unrealistic offers come in ABOVE the max appraisal price is, frankly...a waste of time.

And when u do this, u get a buyer who got caught up in the game of wanting THEIR offer accepted, yet...when they win the bid....these buyers usually have BUYERS REMORSE within days of getting into escrow.

I would say consider price being reasonable, buyer being PRE APPROVED, not pre qualed, do they seem eager to please seller? Meaning are they open to a longer escrow or temp rent back? And MOST IMPORTANTLY how DESPERATELY do they seem to want YOUR HOME!   The buyer whose agent is IN YOUR FACE nicely....is going to HANG in the transaction...not someone

who throws u a sky high offer yet seems disinterested....those r usually making multiple offers and your house may not be their 1st choice.

You want to pick someone who REALLY WANTS YOUR HOME!

Some buyers are easier than others for an agent to determine whether they are the most likely to close. I agree with Joy Bender that in some situations, you are only as good as your intuition when you try to figure out who is most likely to perform.

Both the seller and the buyer need to know the rules before multiple offers come in. The listing agent needs to thoroughly explain what might happen and what the sequence of events will be when offers arrive. Buyers need to be comfortable with the idea that their offer will be handled fairly.

I agree with Nina Hollander.  I would add cash is king and a quick closing is always nice.

price, terms and conditions..... and not necessarily in that order....

I agree with Nina Hollander - definitely the quality of the loan pre-approval, the price and when they can close.

Sellers look at their bottom line and the ability for the buyer to close! Each seller has different needs so as a listing agent we need to listen carefully to make sure we achieve their goals.

They often think it's all about price but I stress the ability to close.  

Net Offer (Price minus concessions to closing costs minus Who pays "negotiable" fees (HOA transfer for example) )

Close of Escrow Date

Who pays "negotiable" fees (HOA transfer for example)

Verified Prequal and/or Proof of funds

Amount of Earnest Money

Any other Terms or Conditions that vary from offer to offer

Waive inspection?

Waive appraisal?

Price and probability of performing - keeping in mind that the home may not appraise if that highest bidder is subject to financing and things are getting bid up significantly above asking.

If they can perform and when

Cleanest offer means a lot.

It is not always the price.

Qualification of the buyer and contingencies!

Good morning Jeff. I face this issue all the time when bidding on properties to flip. In my case I'm always offering cash, no inspections and closing within a week. The only thing left is price, it depends on how aggressive I want to be.

There are many issues.  One is how the multiple offer process will work.

Sometimes the listings agents intuition.  The best terms on paper don't always indicate performance.  

I would go in with a very strong offer and maybe A escalation clause up to your limits .....

My first thoughts are if this will be a cash Offer or will financing be required, and what if any are the Contingencies Jeff Dowler CRS. 

Clean offer, good financing, and best price.

It has been my experience sellers get anxious when there are multiple offers. I like to do process of elimination until we have the right offer.

What a great question!  I appreciate all of the answers as it gives me more insight into assisting my buyers.  I do, however, have to give kudos to Carla Muss-Jacobs.  I have seen more than one transaction fall apart because of actions or reputation of the buyers agent.  

A couple things I have encountered that I have not seen hear.  Of course, assuming a preapproved, successful closing:

1).  Many buyers are interested in who is buying their home.  I have had many buyers choose my FHA or VA borrower over others because they knew how much the buyers wanted THEIR home.  While I agree that detachment is crucial for a seller (and a buyer, for that matter); the fact remains that emotions and motivations do play a part in most transactions I have dealt with.

2).  While I realize cash is almost always king, I am always disappointed to hear offers are judged by the type of loan product is being used.  In today's world it rarely takes any longer to close a FHA or VA loan than a conventional.  There are still many misconceptions about "difficulties" of govie loans; but it simply is not applicable in most cases (as long as the MLO and Mortgage Company know what they are doing!!!).  I do recall "back in the day" when FHA and VA were nightmares and it was very easy to "sell" my Community Homebuyer Conventional client over FHA every day of the week.  Times have changed!  I hope sellers and listing agents will seriously consider a well qualified PREAPPROVED govie borrower.  

3).  I have found that my buyers agents were able to put the transaction together because we were on the same page.  Upon request from either agent (and permission from my clients), I have talked with many listing agents and was able to avail their concerns about the merits of my borrowers offer.

Love this question because it is educational in nature.  Appreciate it very much.

Price, financing, buyers down payment, other conditions buyer is asking for such as closing cost, repairs, etc.

How likely the loan is to be approved

How long to settle

Contingencies

The terms, in addition to the price e.g. timing, if it's cash, etc.

Price and Capacity to perform, are 1 and 1A.  A high offer with a weak preappoval and no means to address inspection or appraisal issues will lose to a lower cash or large down payment offer that resolves those concerns and is properly documented.

It has been said before, but Price and Ability to Close.  In determining the latter, many things come into play; who is the lender (known or unknown), down payment, earnest money deposit, etc.

Price is pretty much meaningless in my Sacramento market because a home will appraise at what it will appraise for and everybody mostly offers list or better.

I look for the 110% committed buyer. The motivation of the buyer. If that buyer is steadfast and 110% committed, it means no repair requests will be granted, gaps in appraisals will be paid in cash, and buyers will do whatever it takes to close.

Price, earnest money, closing, contingencies.

In a multiple situation, cleanliness (of the offer) is next to godliness.  And getting a clean offer without doing anything stupid is the real challenge.

It depends on what is important to the seller.  If the closing date is key (need to stay until school is out and avoid a double move), that may drive an acceptance as long as the price is decent.  Also the strength of the buyer is key and their ability to close.  

If they do not offer their highest offer and don

t get it will they kick themselves.

Nothing is as important as likelyhood of PERFORMING to CLOSING! Too bad we are never hard-
fast sure, are we?

1. Strength of financing

2. Lender they are using (and do I or the other agent have a track record good or bad with them?)

3. The buyer's agent representing them.

Ability to close, price, time to close. All cash offers submitted with proof of funds, meeting or exceeding other offers in price and closing in 30 days or sooner, will win every time!

I do not see any issues. They choose the best offer and two backups.

Price, terms, quality of loan, liklihood of completion and history and local of the agent bringing the client.

Depends on the situation of the seller.  If my seller needs to sell and sell now, then quickest close at highest price with fewest contingencies.

If my seller has time to wait on longer close then it would be highest price, fewest contingencies, then closing.

Many times there are one or more cash offers with quick close and no contingencies, as long as we have good proof of funds and they are not low ball offers, these can be the best of all worlds.

Price, concessions, earnest money deposit, strength of loan approval, and how it meets the seller's needs...

The best offer that will get to settlement.

The quality of the buyer's offer.  An offer that is sure to close with the highest net to the seller.

Price, contingencies, concessions, inspection times and closing date

What highest and best really means.