and buy your next house on your timetable, regardless of whether your sale price is the highest in the neighborhood.

Weigh the alternatives. If you realize there are several possible solutions that can satisfy you, you'll be less dependent on any one of outcome. For example, back in the store, what would have happened if the store had refused your offer to buy the floor model? If you had considered that possibility beforehand, you could have brought along enough money to offer cash for
it -- which would let the store avoid paying a fee for accepting your credit card payment.

Know your walk-away number. Figure out at what point the only satisfying outcome is not to do any deal at all. Face this tough question in advance -- otherwise you risk becoming emotionally involved during negotiations and lowering your expectations as the deal progresses.

During the negotiation...

Build a relationship -- even if short-term. Look for common ground (for example, "Do you live in the area too?"... "My friend thinks highly of your work"). This builds trust and encourages the other person to believe that you won't ignore his needs.

Find out what the other side wants. The more information you have about the other party's expectations, the easier it is to come up with solutions for a mutually satisfying deal. Effective techniques...

Ask the other party lots of questions, the same ones you asked yourself beforehand. Ask him about his ideal outcome. What alternatives to his ideal outcome might be acceptable?
What's his walk-away number? He may not tell you, but it doesn't hurt to ask.

Ask the person to restate what he just said. It's amazing how often the restatement turns out to be different from the original. People tend to explain more each time they state their positions, to give more details, to soften their stances and even offer options to what previously
seemed like a hard line. 

Phrase potentially confrontational questions and statements neutrally. Ask, "Aren't you charging me more than we agreed?," not "You're ripping me off, aren't you?" Speak
hypothetically to soften your suggestions. Use phrases like "Just suppose... "

Making an offer...

Let the other person speak first. This works best in price negotiations when you know the other person has a range of prices he may agree to, such as in a salary negotiation.

Reason: If you make the initial offer, you might be setting your sights too low. Even if the offer you get is far less advantageous than you hoped for, you now have a minimum on which to build.

Never make an offer without knowing where you're willing to go next. If you know where and what you can concede,