Is this a cheeky offer?

[Givinguponmyhair]

Im looking at a house that costs 260K for 2 bedrooms, but in the area there are 3 bedrooms that cost 240/250.
WIBU to offer 210?
This is my first time buying so I have no idea whats taking the piss or not

It’s ridiculous. £260k is not the kind of price where sellers will accept a £50k reduction.

Sometimes it’s the seller that has unrealistic expectations. When we were buying our house there were two we looked at with a £40k difference. Houses next door but one to each other, same number of bedrooms, cheaper one had a bigger garden and better parking. I knew the parents of the person selling the more expensive house and knew they were looking in a much more expensive area so needed as much as possible for their old home. We went with the cheaper one and they eventually sold eighteen months later for £6k more than we paid. The estate agent was handling both houses and was very honest that the price it was up for was not their valuation, it was what the sellers set. Without knowing where the OP is buying it’s difficult to say who’s being unrealistic here with the price.

Just make the offer they can decline or make it known they are will to negotiate

I have had much lower offers I don’t take it personally once we negotiated and came to an agreement the other time I straight away declined

Offer it. They can only say no then if you’re still keen raise the offer. You are a FTB and they have somewhere they want 🤷‍♀️

I dont know why youre taking this so personally? 😂
If they say no i wont be "shocked", ill say okay and probably end up buying one of the 3 beds.
Its not like this is some rare gem ive found, its a terraced house with a garden and some cute wallpaper. Its up to them how much they want to crack on with getting their new house.
But on reflection, im not going to feel bad about offering g what I think a house is worth to me. I have no chain, no rush to move or indeed buy, and dont think the house is polished enough to warrant a 100K hike in 4 years or whatever.
Sorry if that randomly sticks in your craw

People list their houses at stupid prices. Just offer what it's worth and don't think about whether they'll find it cheeky or not. Chances are they'll be offended but then they're not exactly living in the real world with that price.

You can offer and they can tell you to do one. What you’re looking at is expense borne by the vendor: hardscaping, plants and interior design/building work all take time and money. Generally while the work happens the vendor has to tolerate massive inconvenience. If these are superficial things you can afford to recreate yourself (with your time and money you have saved) you should go for cheaper property. Generally first time buyers like to wrap that cost up in a mortgage, rather than expose themselves to the risk of unknown building costs.

What do you mean superficial? New kitchen and bathroom or just a lick of paint?

You say you know nothing about it so maybe ask what improvements they've made. You can't see rewiring, a new consumer unit, a new boiler for example.

20% off is very low. I just accepted 10% but I really was desperate to sell.

it depends on many factors.
What are other similar properties (size,location, garden,facilities,modernisation decor) priced at currently and selling for?
How long has it been on the market,what other interest has their been in the property?
How desparate are the sellers to sell?
You could discuss how you feel about prices of larger 3 bed properties in the same location and say you feel its overpriced and see what they say.
Or you could make a really low offer (you risk them thinking you are not serious)

If the improvements are ‘purely superficial’ then why don’t you offer on one of the cheaper 3 bedrooms and then you can spend money making your own improvements? It sounds like what you value is the feel and the location and the garden, which are nicer than other similar properties and probably why priced as it is.

Some estate agents have a reputation for overvaluing homes in order to get the seller to choose them. Then when they don’t sell at that price, the seller ends up reducing the asking price. But it takes longer than if they’d just valued it realistically in the first place. When I had my house valued, my lowest was 425k and the highest 500-550k. I didn’t put it on the market but if I had, the lower valuations would have been the most realistic.

Is it silly to buy a house for the garden?

Garden landscaping is super expensive. Have you costed up the garden you would like? We have a very small terrace garden and I received quotes from 12-40k depending on finish/materials. Landscaping is heavy and dirty work to live through, if you don’t have a side access they carry it all through your house.