This is where a good real estate agent shows their value. With some research, the agent can calculate what the seller's mortgage holder(s) will probably require to approve a short sale. You should offer no less than that amount, and a few thousand more will probably help.

Often, the listing agent for the short sale is not experienced in short sales and does not set the price appropriately. Some homework on your agent's part should get you a very good idea of what to offer.

Hello Sherilin,

Typically the price listed,for a short sale, is well under market value. Your Realtor can determine this per the location,condition,etc. of the home. If you really want a particular home,be aggressive as short sales often have multiple bids and the lender will only accept the highest and best offer. After comping short sales for my clients, I have typically offered $5,000 over the listing price( depends on the listed price) along with the max. allowed by the lender to contribute towards their closing costs as well. This usually adds about $40/month to the mortgage. I have had tremendous success,for my clients, winning out over other bids.

The investor is going to make a decision based on the opinion of the BPOs, your negotiating strategy should be based on what you think those BPOs are going to come in at.