Tips For Selling Property To A Foreign National

If you are planning to sell real estate property to a foreign national, prepare for the experience to be different from selling to a US citizen. However, you shouldn't have any difficulty with the experience if you take these measures:

Don't Lump All Foreigners into One Group

Many people make the mistake of assuming that all foreigners act the same way. For example, if you have dealt with a foreign national before and they accepted your sale price without a negotiation, you may be tempted to assume that international buyers don't negotiate. However, that may have just been the peculiarity of the person's culture or even their individuality; it is not unique to all international buyers. Therefore, approach the deal without any preconceived notions about international buyers.

Understand the Foreigners Negotiating Culture 

Once you have confirmed your buyer's country of origin, it's best to research their culture to help you with the negotiations. You need to know the offensive things to avoid, whether to expect a hard negotiation and how to show them respect. It's not that you have to know these things to sell to an international buyer, but knowing them will certainly go a long way in making the process smooth.

Understand That the Delay Can Be Faster or Slower Than You Are Used To

If you have a rough idea of how long a typical real estate transaction takes in the USA, forget about it when dealing with an international buyer. There are things that can hasten or slow down (the latter is more typical) the process. For example, most foreign internationals buy US properties in cash; this can hasten the process because they don't have to deal with a grueling mortgage acquisition process.

However, most foreign property transactions take longer than their domestic counterparts. Foreign credit checks, currency conversion delays (at the request of buyers), mortgage processing are some of the causes of these delays.

Take Extra Steps to Protect Yourself

Lastly, it's also useful to take extra protective precautions when dealing with a foreign national. It's more expensive to take legal action against a foreign national than it is to sue a domestic buyer. Therefore, you need to go the extra mile to prevent issues that may necessitate lawsuits. For example, it may be helpful to ask for sizable good faith money to cushion you from losses if the buyer unexpectedly backs out of the deal.

Hopefully, you won't face any serious difficulties during the sale. As usual, using an experienced realtor will make the process easier for you.