It’s important if you’re interested in buying a house that you are staying on top of the market. You need to be getting to new listings as soon as possible to see if it’s the house for you. But, the real trick to getting into that new house is the way that you write your home offer.

To that end, here are three tips to help home buyers get their home offer accepted.

You have to choose the right price

You might hear a lot of old information surrounding the idea of coming in with a lowball home offer as your initial offer. There was a time when this strategy was a good strategy for buyers. However, in a hot seller’s market this strategy will lose you the house every time.

Instead, home buyers will need to come in with the strong home offer from the start. When there are multiple offers on a house low offers are going to be tossed out. It’s the high offers that the sellers are going to consider.

This doesn’t mean that you come in with a price that is higher than it should be. Instead, look at the comps, consider your budget, and then choose the price that works. The important thing for home buyers is to never allow yourself to go over budget to try to win a house. You may win the house immediately but, it will feel like a loss when you struggle each month to afford your payment.

The terms matter, too

The price you offer on the house isn’t the only thing that sellers are going to consider. You need to carefully choose the other terms that you include in your home offer. You can show home sellers that you are a serious buyer by making a larger down payment. You can also show them your pre-approval to let them know that you have taken the preliminary steps of getting your loan.

And, home buyers will want to carefully consider what contingencies to include in your offer. Keep in mind that the more contingencies that are included the better the chance that the seller is going to pass on your offer. However, do not skip contingencies that you need to keep in place, such as the home inspection.

Appeal to their emotions

Sellers are people too. While they are probably excited to be able to sell their house, they’re probably a little sad about it, too. This is the house that they have been living in and making memories in for years.

You can appeal to the seller by writing a letter, appealing to their personal side. Let them know what you love about the house and why you believe it’s the right house for you. Make sure to compliment them on the things that they have done while at the house, like the beautiful landscaping. And, talk about the memories that you can’t wait to make in the house.

In a competitive market, the little things can make a big difference. This is why home buyers will want to take the time and put plenty of thought into their home offer. When you combine the right price, the right terms, and appeal to the personal side of the buyer, you have a home offer that will be hard to resist.