Here's an interesting phenomenon --- in most real estate transactions, the buyer makes the first move, by submitting an offer to purchase a house.

In stark contrast to this (time-proven?) norm, I have recently had several Sellers make an offer to sell.  More specifically, when it became known that a buyer was seriously considering the purchase of the seller's home, the seller proactively either:

• made a general offer of being willing to negotiate on price or pay the buyer's closing costs, or
• made a specific offer of a price below the asking price, or the inclusion of a certain amount of a closing cost credit

So far, it has had mixed results --- in some cases it has worked (and a transaction has come together), and in some cases it has not worked.

If you are a seller, considering such a strategy, I would advise you to consider that:

• Proactively making an offer to sell that is more compelling than that suggested by your list price can sometimes motivate a buyer to engage in the negotiation process.  This is valuable, as many current homeowners who are attempting to sell their home would love to even have an offer to try to negotiate.
• You should expect that (most) buyers will try to negotiate further below your offer to sell.  Thus, if you have a hard and fast bottom line, don't reveal that number in your offer to sell, as the transaction may not come together.
• In addition to offering something specific to a buyer, it often will serve you well to (attempt to) explore what would be most helpful for a prospective buyer --- a price reduction vs. closing cost credit vs. repair/upgrade.

I'll certainly be among the first to let you know when the tables are turning again -- but for now, buyers definitely have unique opportunities to negotiate -- and sellers can sometimes spur that on by a proactive offer.