Real estate discounts: How much can you ask for when negotiating?
By Cheyenne Hollis 
The art of negotiation requires you to understand numerous factors. This is especially true when it comes to real estate discounts. Discounts in the world of property come in all shapes and sizes, some of which you may not even currently realize. At the moment, many developers are willing to offer discounts due to the current situation. However, not all of them are broadcasting the offers.
Trying to talk down the price of a home requires much more nuance than, say, knocking a few bucks off some souvenir even in a buyer’s market.
Obtaining real estate discounts during negotiations is possible in most cases as long as you know what to ask for. Here are a few things you are going to want to understand before trying to get the price down.
1) Be realistic
Firstly, don’t offer half the value of a property and expect to get a response. Even if the market is slow or the seller is super motivated, they aren’t going to take a massive loss unless it is absolutely necessary. It’s okay to go in with an initial offer that’s low, but still be reasonable.
The goal is to get the seller moving down. If you turn them off completely, there won’t be any negotiating.
2) Use percent not price
House and condo units are expensive. When asking for real estate discounts using price, the sum you want probably seems like a lot of money.
In percent form, it might seem like a lot less.
By stating your discount request in percentage form during negotiations, the seller may be more inclined to see it as reasonable when compared with the total amount of money it actually comes out to.
3) Consider alternatives to a straight price cut
When looking for real estate discounts, don’t fixate on the selling price. Yes, this is important. However, there are other ways you can save yourself some money.
If you aren’t making any headway on price during negotiations, think about the fees and taxes involved in the transaction process.
These are usually split between the buyer and seller but can be negotiable. If the seller isn’t budging on price, turn your attention to getting him or her to pick up the tab on all the taxes and/or fees. This may not count as a traditional discount, but you’re still saving money all the same.