What to offer in this climate?

[Beebumble2]

Back here from another thread. Today we viewed a house that ticked all the boxes.

• Needs TLC, some internal alteration to suit us, near an electric railway line but minimal noise ( we heard a train go by), in fact less than usual road noise.

They are older and want to move to another area to be with family.

• We are cash buyers, in no hurry are we have somewhere to live already and can wait. So no chain. The marked is slow here, especially for larger family houses. It’s in one of our specified road.
• we both like it, but will have to spend money on it.
• its in a desirable area, at the right price.

My question is if it’s £525,000 what would you offer? I know only we can make the decision, but a quick survey on MN is reassuring.

How long has it been on the market?
What are similar properties selling for?
Estimate how much the work you want to do would cost.
What is it worth to you to buy in your preferred area?

On the market at £525K, they may be wanting offers over £500K. Try lower as a starting point.

Thanks, it’s been on the market for 3 weeks, I know not long, but the agent let it slip that he did think it would go quickly. That was before I viewed it or told him of our position. The surrounding houses are on bit plots and most have been extended they reach the £700+ mark.

£495

We’ve put in an offer now at £515. Thanks for the replies. It will be our last house, so if we’ve paid a bit over we’ll take it on the chin!

Think this was a smart move tbh, and I've made lowballs in my time.

Some of the features you mentioned scream potential for added value and over the long term you'll be cooking

If you need to spend money on it then I would also try to factor in what that will cost - and what it be worth once thats done. Extreme caution required with this though - as prices seem to be falling and interest rates are still forecast to go up again later this year. You need to give yourself a healthy margin and expect values may shift downward. Plus inflation is still high so better to overestimate on the works you want to do.
Agents are desperate to present offers -so a bit lower than you think is cheeky as a starting point imo