“My wife and I found a Pacific Beach home we want to buy. The list price is $525,000. What do you think a good offer would be?”
Answer:
Probably $515,000.
Or $535,000.
Or perhaps $400,000.
Your question is impossible to answer until you tell me:
1. What is the home worth? (You should have a good idea if you’ve been looking at homes and have a skilled, trusted agent advising you.)
2. Are there any competing offers?
3. How much do you want the house?
4. How motivated is the seller? (if you know)
Unfortunately, there is no formula such as “you should offer 95% of list price.”