Here is the bottomline, a buyer will offer what they feel the home is worth, and a seller will either agree or disagree. Many sellers are having difficulty accepting the fact their home has dropped in value. I often hear sellers say... "if a buyer thinks my house is worth less then they will make an offer, I want to wait for an offer before I lower the price" Another issue is many sellers took second loans on their homes. A few years ago it was very easy to borrow up to 125% of the value of their property. In other words they borrowed 25% more then what their home was valued. Since appreciation has stopped or slowed in the last few years, their home is not worth what they owe. They can't advertise their home for less then they owe, unless they have access to a great deal of money to bring to the closing table. So, they are waiting for a buyer to make an offer, so they can approach the bank and ask for assistance. Sellers really want you to make an offer, they may not be happy at the 10%-15% less then asking price, but in this market any offer is better then no offer.
So, don't be shy to make an offer. The interest rates have dropped at or below 5.375%. HUD is offering special incentives for buyers and the Ohio Bond Program is offering downpayment assistance for first time buyers. Take advantage of the low home prices and the awesome interest rates. This is a buyers market and it won't last!
Please feel free to contact me if you have further questions.
Christie Peyton, Remax Result Plus
Teampeyton@gmail.com

While some owners may be offended by a low offer, others will not be. Sometimes owners are just hoping for any offer. After that it really depends on the degree of each party's motivation whether a deal can be reached. Starting at 10 or 15% below the asking price is not at all unusual and may even be considered a good starting place in this buyer's market. Just let me finish saying that Springboro has not experienced as large of a slow down as some other markets because of it's excellent schools, great location and wonderful community, it is a great place to live and raise a family. You can always have a real estate agent do a market analysis for you on a property if your are interested. Contact me and I can give you more information.

It is never rude to make an offer, period. I think it's nice that you worry about appearing rude, but I always tell my sellers, an offer is an offer. It means somebody cared enough to take the time to consider your property. Hopefully, you can meet somewhere in the middle and both parties can feel the end result is a win-win.

As to your specific question, I don't know what's going on in Vancouver, so hopefully somebody will chime in here, but I can tell you that a fixed percentage off ask price cannot effectively be applied across the board. Without knowing if the property in question if priced right to begin with, it is impossible to say whether or not 10-15% would be lowball, just right, or heck - even too much!

Put your head together with an area Realtor who can present you with solid "sold" comps, and formulate an offer based on what is happening right now in the neighborhood.

Good luck to you!