Top negotiation tips - read this before you make an offer on a property.

Finding the property of your dreams is super exciting. You and your family have fallen deeply in love with this home; you've all chosen your bedrooms, and your imaginations are running wild with what life will be like when you live there. You're thinking about dinner parties you can host and the gardens in the summer. How lovely it will be to sit in the early morning sun with your coffee or how the children will love to run and play freely in the gardens. It is perfect, and your hearts are bursting with emotion.

But that's where the emotion has to be put on hold for a moment as you turn your attention towards making an offer. Suddenly, you are thrust into a very logical process where you must think about money, figures and negotiations. There are hurdles for you to jump before you can get to the acceptance that is the next step towards this perfect new home for you and the family. The best way forward with a negotiation is to step away from the emotions involved and treat this part of the process as a transaction.

For the best outcome, which is, of course, an acceptable offer, follow these tips.

Get your finances in place: This is not to say you need to have your mortgage offer or your cash ready to pay for the property; as you know, the legal process of a property transaction can take months, but you do need to be able to demonstrate how you intend to pay for the property and have the evidence ready to show this. An agent will need to see that you can pay for the property, whether this is using cash or mortgage funds. If you intend to sell your property and use the equity held within that property without raising any additional finance, you obviously won't have a mortgage agreement to show. But you've likely had a property valuation to prove your home's value. If your home is already under offer, then details of the sale and the price you've sold for would suffice. Any offers you make can not be accepted without proving that you can substantiate the offer.

Be fair and reasonable: Unless you offer the full asking price, the price you're offering will be less than the marketing price. This means that you require the seller to compromise, and hopefully agree to accept an offer lower than the price they'd hoped to achieve for their home. With that in mind, whilst you might want to get the property for as low a price as possible, you have to bear in mind that you are making an offer to someone who may not want to sell their property 'cheap'. The best way to deal with this is to be fair with your initial offer without causing offence.

Explain yourself: Of course, you may believe the marketing price is inflated, and the property is not worth that much. This isn't a problem, but you must be prepared to explain your reasoning behind the offer. It will not be relevant to the seller that you simply want to pay less, and any offer of this nature will simply have to hope that the seller is willing to compromise down to that level. Naturally, many property sales are negotiated in this manner, and there are some successes. However, there is much less control over the outcome. By explaining your offer, you're showing the seller your offer is based on logic and not emotion. The evidence, if indeed you are correct, is clear and can not be argued with.

Put yourself in the seller's shoes and think how you'd feel if the offer were given to you - be kind and considerate with your negotiations. You'll be well on the way to an accepted offer, making the dreams of owning that property a reality. Once the offer is accepted, you can turn on your emotional side again and begin daydreaming and planning your new life in your new home very soon.

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