Round or odd number for best and final offer?

[chiefcha]

We've offered asking price of 170 on a house but it's looking like it will go to best and finals. One other offer so far but more viewings today.

We want to offer 176 (chose this to edge over any 175 offer) but should we up that to an odd number, say 176,100? Is that savvy or does it look amateur/odd?

Things that could already go in our favour are we are FTB so chain free, we made the first offer, and it's a probate where they ideally want to sell to a family who will live there.

We have been looking for months, have already lost out twice in best and finals and just want to make sure we do everything to give us the best chance!

I would offer £176,050

I would just go with £176.1K and leave it at that, you are a good bet (FTB) so that is strongly in your favour.

I am currently selling my late parents house and having had upwards of 20-viewings (all sold and ready to go) we are going to best & final offer.
It isn't just the top offer (several have offered the asking price and one is £25K over) , it is also who is going to be the best buyer and will fit in with my plans (I am currently living there while my new house is being built). A FTB would feature strongly in my choice however I think I am slightly out of their range!

make sure you are there when the final bids are opened as the agents are not beyond calling someone to increase their offer , I have witnessed this twice

@hannahcolobus

It makes sense but I too would worry it’d make me look sneaky? Could you round up to £176,500?

If I was considering the offers I’d be more likely to think you’d offered that amount by factoring in different things rather than just trying to get one over on the other bidders.

Good luck- hope you get it :)

But surely the whole point is to get one up on the other bidders?!

I don't think £100 or £500 is going to make any difference. Your strength is your position so give details (briefly) in the email/ letter of your position (chain free), connection to area, can work to vendors timescales etc. if you can add anything - such as being willing to the house as is (I.e. the vendors don't have to clear it) that can sometimes work in a probate matter. We also added that my husband's firm would do the conveyancing to make sure there were no delays. We've done it twice and got the house both times and I know for a fact we weren't the highest bidders.

I think 176,500 is ok. Not 176,100

It's not an auction though is it, so it's not automatically the highest number that 'wins'. Best and final is selected on the best position as well as best price. So £100 won't make a difference and yes I think it would seem a bit odd. An extra £500 would be okay.

Thank you, these replies have been helpful. I have to agree with the reasoning behind why 500 would be better than 100 more. It seems like less of a tactic. I included all our selling points in our original offer but will reiterate those!

DD got her house at 206250, nearest
Rice 205000, I assume that bidder didn’t think 210000 was worth it?, it wasn’t.

We accepted one £2,000 lower on our house. They were both over the asking price. We felt the lower was in q better financial position.

Sorry that should read it was £2,000 below the other bid but still £10,000 over the asking price.

I think it seems odd. If your position is solid, £100 or £1000 isn’t going to make any difference.

@SpeakingFranglais

DD got her house at 206250, nearest Rice 205000, I assume that bidder didn’t think 210000 was worth it?, it wasn’t.

I don't understand

@mindutopia

I think it seems odd. If your position is solid, £100 or £1000 isn’t going to make any difference.

Agreed

When my house when to best and final I was looking at position. None of the buyers had a house to sell so being a FTB was actually a disadvantage. I find they're easily spooked. So if the FTB had bid £100 or even £1000 over the highest offer I wouldn't have gone with them

I'm working on the assumption that we will be competing against other FTB though. It's a small house that needs updating so it will most likely be either be FTB or a developer. If the agent is to believed they would prefer to sell to a family

I thought EA always recommended going for an unusual amount rather than a round one.

When my house went to best and finals the bids were tens of thousands apart (935, 975, 1m, on a 945 ask). I went with 975 because they were in the best position.
I would not be impressed or swayed by £100. £500 maybe.

So there was another offer made on Saturday apparently, 3 offers on the table now including us, all chain free and "strong offers". I'm waiting to hear back today how the vendor wants to proceed and whether it'll be best and finals. We've decided on 176,500 in that instance.
I can't focus on work today, I'm so nervous!

@chiefcha
Go £176,550 😜😂😂

Go what you can afford and what it's worth to you.

Just got our house by putting an extra £500 on a 405k offer. Did it last second and it made the difference. Good luck!

@billysboy

make sure you are there when the final bids are opened as the agents are not beyond calling someone to increase their offer , I have witnessed this twice

Being as how it's all done by email and in Covid times being there is highly unlikely to be an option. Having been through the best and final system this year on several occasions as one agent said to me at the moment position is not really coming into it cold hard cash is the deciding factor for the vast majority of sellers, Bid the maximum you are prepared to pay for the property be that a round or odd number. Make sure it is a number you will be happy with for the time you own the house.

We didn't get it. Feeling very upset this time and starting to doubt whether we'll ever be able to buy anything.