Asking price for a house is 275K; 2007 market value is 239K; What should my first offer be?

Question

the house is located in the SW miami area

Answer 1

TO EVERYONE THAT KEEPS ASKING THIS QUESTION:

Before you make any offer, you MUST KNOW THE VALUE OF THE PROPERTY!!!!

Your realtor should provide you with what has sold in the past 6 months and compare these with the house you are looking at.

Maybe the price of the house you are looking at is actually below market. Just because a house is for sale, DOES NOT make it over priced. We only do listings with sellers that will try to sell their homes at market value or a few percents lower. We will not take a over priced listing. It costs us money and the house will sit. To all those sellers that say that they will over price the house, BUT look at offers - you are fooling yourselves.

There is a LOT of misinformation out there. There are 3 types of buyers.

1. The ones that can't afford their house and need to sell. However, these people usually don't have any equity and even if they wanted to sell low, they would have to make up the difference on their mortgage at settlement. These usually go back to the bank.

2. The ones that WANT to sell, but have no equity. Same story as above, but they will not loss the house and will wait to sell when the market gets better.

3. The ones that want to sell and have equity. This is the only group that you can actually get a "deal" with. However, equity in their home is their greatest asset and most of these people will wait the market out.

Answer 2

James is right from an investors point of view, but most sellers, even lenders, are not accepting ridiculously low offers.

2007 market value is meaningless, you need to know what comparable properties have SOLD for in the last few months.

Zillow says they are accurate on value within 7%, but 7% at this price could cost you alot of money.

Have a Realtor run comparables to help you formulate your offer.

Answer 3

go wild and offer 229000 and if they want to sell bad enough they will because houses are still dropping. This is also true if the people selling it want to retire.

Answer 4

I'm a beginning investor and own one rental. I'm flying to FL in August to purchase a second rental.  Answer:  LOWBALL the seller. LOWBALL, LOWBALL, LOWBALL.  You own the world, girl.  Cash is king in this market.    Take no prisoners.  If they don't bite, go to the next house.  Remember, you rule the world.  You control the transaction, not the seller.

A good rule of thumb to ask is:   What could this house sell for today?    Well, it's usually alot lower than the "market value."  You go girl.  LOWBALL the owner, take the property, flip it, or rent it.  I love renters.  They are making me rich.

Basic Points:  Check zillow.com for a "Zestimate."  Then, look at comps.   This way you can get pretty close to calculating the "market value" of the property.  Next step:  Multiply the "market value" by 30%.  Subtract the 30% from the market value, and you have your first offer.  Example:  Market Value: 100,000  Your First Offer 70,000

Good luck with the transaction, and let me know.  Remember, you are a professional.  If you do not get the contract you want, MOVE ON.  Do not waste your time, or that of the seller.

Answer 5

234K! <- Guessing

Have you had it appraised? Does it need anything fixed? So much more goes into the process. You should get an agent.

Answer 6

What are the comps (comparables)?  Your real estate agent should fill you in on that info (the seller's agent won't).  If you don't have a buyer's broker, you have to a little research.  Does your local paper (not big-city daily like Miami Herald) list recent sales?  How does the asking price compare with asking prices of all the other places in the neighborhood (you should have seen a bunch of them).   Miami property is not jumping.  What makes this neighborhood worth more than 10% increase in less than a year?  Then offer below the comps. If there are no other buyers in the wings, things aren't moving, then lowball your offer, say $225K.  They can always counter-offer, so test the waters.