Kym Flaigg

Your question has many points to it that may or may not effect the value of the property. What price the bank will accept is erroneous to the VALUE of the property. And vise a versa. The best place to start is to find out what like kind properties ARE selling for. If the bank is asking $305K, where are they getting that price point at; ie how are they determining value? Then do the same homework for your offer. Find comparable properties that have SOLD, not that are listed around the price point that you want to offer. Then submit the supporting documentation with your offer explaining why your offer is at the price it is at. Also, if you can't find comparable properties that have sold that are in need of as much work as the subject property, then hire a contractor to give you an estimate, in writing on his letter head, that gives the costs of the remodel work that is needed. Then deduct that cost from the average of the sold comparable properties and submit all of that with your offer again along with a letter explaining your position.

All this may help you win a lower bid. Hopefully, they will see the reasoning and understand the value you submit to them. But, the bank is still a seller and seller's can ASK whatever they want to ask and it doesn't need to make sense to you for them to ask it. If after you have done your research, submitted your offer and presented your case for value, the seller is still unwilling to accept your offer you may need to either move on to another property or if you want to gamble, you can wait and see if over time the bank reduces the price to something more reasonable; assuming another buyer doesn't come along in the mean time.

Good luck to you! - Tue Jul 22 2008, 11:24