Everyone wants a good deal when buying a home. Being a strong buyer and taking practical and realistic approach is the best strategy to achieve your goal. Often times buyers shoot themselves in the foot by making an initial offer that is too low and or adding unreasonable contingencies. Doing so immediately puts the Seller in the defensive mode and makes them less inclined to compromise and more likely to counter at a higher price or not counter at all.
The best way to save money is to make your offer attractive to the Seller and make it hard for them to say no. Being more aggressive on the initial offer, flexibility on timelines for closing and possession, and few contingencies outside the norm are several ways a Buyer can save money. Just to be clear, I am not suggesting you pay an inflated price, but rather increase your initial offer. Doing so, will often times get you a more favorable counter offer from the Seller as they will perceive you as being someone they want to work with. The closer the gap, the more likely a deal is going to materialize as it gets for Sellers to walk away. Keep in mind, its not where you start, but rather where you finish that matters.