Sellers may be surprised, and not particularly happy, to learn that today, more often than not, the sales price listed on the first contract signed is not the same as the sales price at the closing. It's just a fact of life for us now, because so many issues can arise between the accepted offer and the final transaction that occurs.
Inspections come right after the offer is signed, and today's buyers are likely to expect that everything that gets pointed out as an issue in any inspections will be paid for by the sellers. That wasn't the case years ago, when buyers viewed work to be done as something that they were taking on in the purchase, unless the problems were structural. Although the sellers don't always agree to every item, especially when it involves questions of taste and preference, but they often are asked to give money back.
Mortgages now can also provide for funds from the seller. Various programs differ greatly, but there is a range of items, from inspections to closing costs, that banks and mortgage companies may allow the buyers to have paid by the sellers, and that range goes up to 6% of the mortgage amount on the high end. While everything must be disclosed in the closing documents, it can prove to be an additional hit to the sellers.
Appraisals, usually ordered for the lender, can cause changes, if the home does not appraise for the amount being requested in a mortgage. If the sellers can't pay the difference, the sellers might decide to lower the price. This, as with money toward inspection items, is less likely to occur if there are backup offers that could be accepted, if the buyers do not want to leave the contract price alone.
Finally, things that break or go wrong between the time of the accepted offer and the closing are the responsibility of the sellers, and, while it doesn't happen that commonly, the reason for the preclosing walkthrough is to make sure that the home is in the same condition as when it went under contract.
Although this list may strike fear in the hearts of sellers, the real lesson is that you shouldn't be angry or unprepared with an answer if any of these items are raised. Once you know that there can be bumps along the way, it's easier to accept changes, or at least consider them rationally.
