In Arizona, offers are written on the Arizona REALTORS® Residential Resale Purchase Contract — a standardized form that packages your price with terms sellers weigh just as heavily. Two offers at the same price can look completely different once you read the whole package.
The Levers We Pull
- Price — anchored to real comparable sales, not the list price. We show you what the data says before you decide what the home is worth to you.
- Earnest money — your good-faith deposit, commonly around 1% of the price, held by the neutral escrow company (never the seller). Structured correctly it stays refundable through your contingencies; a larger deposit signals commitment without adding real risk.
- The inspection period — 10 days by default under the contract. Keeping it, and using it well, is your single most important protection.
- Financing & appraisal contingencies — your exits if the loan falls through or the home appraises low. In a bidding war, an appraisal gap commitment can beat a higher offer — but only promise what you can actually cover in cash.
- Timeline & possession — a closing date matched to the seller's needs, or a short leaseback, costs you nothing and can be worth more than money.
- Seller concessions — in balanced markets, credits toward closing costs or a rate buydown can save you more than the same amount off the price.
The Inspection Period & The BINSR
During the inspection period you can investigate anything — general inspection, roof, HVAC, pool, termites, sewer scope — and cancel with your earnest money back if you're not satisfied. If you want repairs instead, you deliver a BINSR (Buyer's Inspection Notice and Seller's Response) listing what you're asking the seller to fix. The seller can agree, decline, or meet you partway. Ask for what matters — safety, systems, roof — and skip the cosmetic nitpicks that sour negotiations.
Counters And Multiple Offers
Expect a counteroffer — it's the normal rhythm of a deal, not a rejection. In multiple-offer situations we find out what the seller actually cares about (often certainty and timing, not just price) and shape the package around it. And when a home is priced for a frenzy, the discipline to walk away is a strategy too; there is always another house.
20+ years of negotiations in one sentence: win on terms, protect with contingencies, and never let a bidding war set your budget.
Find The Home To Offer On What Happens After Acceptance
