Need some bidding advice.....

DH and I put in a bid into a home on Friday at $360. The owner countered to $375. So, we countered back to $365 hoping to end up somewhere in the middle between $370-375. The owner said he was insulted by our counter, and to come back when we have a happier counter.

The house was listed at $380 (he orginally listed the house at $450 2 months ago, but moved out and needs the house sold). He had another offer two weeks before ours at $371 and declined it right on. Our realtor told this owner that we were a guaranteed buyer, pre-approved and had 20%, so he moved off his $380 to $375.

DH and I are so disappointed at what happened during the 2nd counter, and in no way did we mean to insult the owner, but as much as the house is nicely done inside, the outside (roof, driveway, no landscaping, new oil chimney needed) needs some work, so we have to take that into consideration into what the house needs within the next year.

What would you guys do?

Any help or advice is appreciated! Thanks!

Re: Need some bidding advice.....

Honestly- it depends how much you are willing to spend on the house-- how high are you willing to go? Realistically a couple of thousand bucks does not make a big difference in a mortgage. Just make your final offer and if they don't accept it, wash your hands of it-- it may have not been meant to be and this guy will be shooting himself in the foot.

Re: Need some bidding advice.....

well...it really depends on how much you like the home..

I find it odd that he was "offended" by the second bid as opposed to the first.

I am also wondering how much the house is really worth...sincehe put it up originally sooo much higher..(was he on crack? or does he need to get out ASAP?)

IMO if i loved the house and if i could afford it...and if i felt the house was worth it...forget what the buyer said and just maybe think about the bid of 375...if you really want it that is.

If you feel that the house isn't worth it or you can't go that high...well the forget it...

Re: Need some bidding advice.....

going from $450 to $380 in two months is severe...if you arent willing to go higher I would walk away, he might call you back in a month!

Re: Need some bidding advice.....

insulted This is business that is a strange thing to say. But, it really depends on how badly you want it. I think some of these sellers are really greedy, and are asking way too much for their homes

Re: Need some bidding advice.....

Posted by veeandrich

insulted This is business that is a strange thing to say. But, it really depends on how badly you want it. I think some of these sellers are really greedy, and are asking way too much for their homes

Re: Need some bidding advice.....

It's a business transaction. Don't feel bad if he was insulted. He's probably annoyed that he had to lower his asking price. I thought your offer was fair. Unless it's your dream home, I would wait it out.

Re: Need some bidding advice.....

Thanks everyone!!! I greatly appreciate your advice. This was our first bidding experience with a home, and although our parents have knowledge of this process, that was over 30 years ago and the market has changed considerably! Thank you!

Re: Need some bidding advice.....

I think you need to think about how badly you want the house. In the grand scheme of things, the 10-15K you're talking about isn't going to make a huge difference in your mortgage payments, but I'd check with your broker.

I've also learned that a lot of sellers are unrealistic about asking prices. My real estate agent said that's why so many houses are on the market -- many sellers don't realize that this is a buyer's market.

Just to give you an example, DH and I found an adorable starter home that was in mint condition. Absolutely beautiful. The seller was asking $385. We made an offer of $375. Truth is though, I couldn't see the house appreciated signifigantly in value due to it's size. The seller countered at 380 and insisted she wouldn't go lower. We accepted, but then it fell through and looking back, I'm glad it did. Now it's on the market again and she wanted to sell it to us again. This time we declined.

If you love the house and can afford the extra $10K or so, I say do it, especially if you can see it as a great investment. That's exactly what we're doing now -- spending about $15K more than we originally planned, but we're getting a house that is already undervalued by about $25K. The payments will be a little bit higher than we wanted (about $250) but in the end, we felt it was the right thing to do.

Re: Need some bidding advice.....

you and your DH need to sit down and figure out how badly you want the house. If you go up to let's say $370, your morgage won't change drastically, but I wouldn't go any higher.

Re: Need some bidding advice.....

Re: Need some bidding advice.....

Posted by PotofLuck06

Posted by kerrycec03

you and your DH need to sit down and figure out how badly you want the house. If you go up to let's say $370, your morgage won't change drastically, but I wouldn't go any higher.

And that's the million dollar question. DH doesn't want to talk about it at work and wants to wait till we're home.

However, we found out one thing today. The current owner bought the home in 2001 and is selling it now due to job relocation. He bought it for $239,990!

Re: Need some bidding advice.....

Posted by kerrycec03

Posted by PotofLuck06

Posted by kerrycec03

you and your DH need to sit down and figure out how badly you want the house. If you go up to let's say $370, your morgage won't change drastically, but I wouldn't go any higher.

And that's the million dollar question. DH doesn't want to talk about it at work and wants to wait till we're home.

However, we found out one thing today. The current owner bought the home in 2001 and is selling it now due to job relocation. He bought it for $239,990!

Yea, but where is he relocating to?

Re: Need some bidding advice.....

be very careful... RE agents are KNOWN to lie through their teeth since they make their money off the selling price. it sounds suspicious to me that he was not "offended" by your 1st offer but suddenly is by the counter.

if you REALLY love the house, a few thousand will not break you over 30 yrs, otherwise, I would walk away.

Message edited 11/27/2006 3:36:01 PM.

Re: Need some bidding advice.....

You might want to see what is the lowest the seller would go for. We put in a bid and instead of going back and forth a bunch of times with bids the seller said what the lowest they would go is. That worked for us because we were ok with that number.

On the other hand some people are just greedy and want every penny they can try to get for a house. Even though they have obviously moved out.