Cheeky offer on a house. How low?

[TeaChocKitKat]

How much lower than the asking price can you offer without looking really cheeky? We are chain free and keen to move quickly. Have seen a lovely house that is also chain free but it looks over priced (and is over our budget). We really love it so want to make an offer (allowing for wriggle room) so dont know how low to start whilst being taken seriously.

There was no off street parking and parking was a nightmare. No off street parking isnt a deal breaker but there was a bus stop right outside, the road was busy and we really struggled to find anywhere to park. It would have been perfect otherwise.

I don't think you can consider it comparable. Having no parking is a big deal breaker and would definitely mean the price would be lower.

Op, your last post explains clearly why the £260k one is cheaper. No off road parking, nightmare parking, busy street etc. Of course the house in a better location with its own parking (drive?) is worth more!

The lack of parking would have kept the price down- you may not therefore be comparing like with like.

There was no off street parking and parking was a nightmare. No off street parking isnt a deal breaker but there was a bus stop right outside, the road was busy and we really struggled to find anywhere to park. It would have been perfect otherwise.

so obviously off street parking is going to make a house more expensive, and the other house is also in a quieter area which makes it more desirable.

The location and parking put you off when everything else was perfect, so it will be the same for many other potential buyers.

The second house won't be worth as much because of the parking situation you describe.

See the first house next week and take it from there. No harm in making a low offer but it will depend on the market/ seller's position whether you have a chance or not.

From a seller's perspective, I would normally take a lower offer to proceed quickly but at the moment here all decent houses are going. That means I am struggling to buy even though I am downsizing. Prices are really high and although ours is what I would call high for our area, even going outside our search area means that we will put little if nothing away from downsizing.

So to answer your question, I would not sell below asking price because I could not proceed to buy. Its not a question of being unrealistic, it is because I would rather stay where we were for a while longer until the market cools. If it's a probate sale and it has been on the market for some time, you may get lucky.

40k for nicer location and off road parking sounds right. I think you may be thinking wishfully. If it’s been on the market for a couple of months then I’d make an offer but expect to pay £280 ish.

From your description of the other house and price it doesn’t sound overpriced, if you offer too low for a house just on the market it’s a risk, they might not take you seriously, and discount any counter, they might also worry you’ll try and neg down along the process if you raise it. You need to find the right balance.

Off-street parking where I live would add at least £40k to the price of a house (if not more). On-street permits are very expensive, and you mostly can't find a space even if you pay for a permit.

There was no off street parking and parking was a nightmare. No off street parking isnt a deal breaker but there was a bus stop right outside, the road was busy and we really struggled to find anywhere to park. It would have been perfect otherwise.

So the cheaper house is in a shit noisy location. And you're wondering why it's cheaper?

People will definitely pay that much more for parking and a quiet location

Agreed. Even the OP is going to view the more expensive property, and has discounted the cheaper perfect property because of the parking situation and busy road.

They'd be nuts to accept your cheeky offer

Nobody is going to accept a cheeky offer at the moment and you being chain free in rented coming with bells and whistles on it means literally nothing at the moment.

You sound unrealistic OP and have made up your own valuation which sounds wrong. Perhaps post a link if you want decent advice.

if your offer doesnt embarrass you then it is too high

I've just sold my mum's house - we had 12 offers, not one under the asking price, we accepted the offer at 13% over.

In a sellers market I think you're taking a risk.

I dunno. The market is crazy at the moment. In the last 12 months about half a dozen l similar houses on the same street as the one on for £300k have been sold. They have gone for between £185k and £230k. I know prices have gone up but £300k seems a massive increase. The advert also says 'offers in the region of'. We are going to see it later so hopefully we will have a better idea of the vendors expectations then.

You’ve based your assumptions on the wrong info. Rightmove, Zoopla etc are really slow in publicising sold houses prices so the houses you’ve seen were sold quite a while back. Check when they went on the market if this still can be seen.
Parking and quiet street are very important. In some areas it’s pure gold. Plus these houses might go into different catchment areas for schools etc etc. I’m not saying you shouldn’t compare it’s about how to compare.

Someone put in a cheeky offer on ours and hasn’t upped it. We’ve dismissed them as figure they’re trying to pull a fast one and someone else will come along who will put in a sensible offer

We had a cheeky offer from the people who are renting a house over the road from us, this was like nearly 2 1/2 years ago and they’re still renting the house over the road from us so that gives you an indication as to how seriously to take cheeky offers 🙄

Saw the house today. The estate agent was lovely and agreed it was overpriced. It needs a fair bit of work. We might put in an offer.

I'm surprised the agent said they thought it was overpriced, especially as the need for work would have been factored into the asking price.

I still don't see how you're convinced it's overpriced if by your own admission its just been listed, the market is crazy and the other property nearby being a similar price despite the road being noisy and the property having no parking. It sounds like the property is priced fairly to reflect its current market value to be honest.

Of course you're entitled to put in a cheeky offer but I really can't see any reason in any of your posts that would suggest it will be considered. So all you risk doing is making the vendors think you're not serious and therefore discounting yourselves from being taken seriously if you make any further offers.

Why would the estate agent (who valued it) tell you it’s overpriced?! Shooting themselves in the foot there.

if you love it, but it’s above your budget, put in an offer on that basis and tell them it’s your max. It still likely will be turned down but if you make it clear you’re a serious and committed buyer they may reconsider.

Depends - if they’ve shown a few people round and had no offered then it is overpriced.