After years of soaring real-estate prices — not to mention periodic bidding wars for third-rate properties — inventories of homes for sale are rising in many parts of the country. As a result, some buyers are regaining long-lost bargaining power. That gives buyers in many markets more room than they have had in years to push sellers to sweeten the pot. Buyers are asking for, and often getting, concessions ranging from help in paying their closing costs to money for repairs or redecorating.


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