How to navigate Best and Final offers

More and more often these days we are seeing the best and final offer process being used, as there is such high demand and so few properties out there for the buying public.

With this in mind I just wanted to pass on a few comments which may help in navigating this potentially difficult process when you’re buying.

I encourage people not to get too caught up in the fact that there will be other buyers creating competition for them.  Because the best and final offer process really should be about your own best and final price… Not what others may have as theirs.  Its easy to say this.. but I do understand that it is just as easy to get caught up in the moment.

Visualise a loaf of sliced bread.

One way I explain it to people is that if you visualise a loaf of sliced bread.  When looking at the loaf of bread the two crusts are the extremities of what potentially you could offer… so the left-hand crust is way below asking price and it would be obvious that another potential purchaser would offer considerably more…  and the right-hand crust is the outside extreme price that no one would ever pay.

So then visualise removing slices from each end of the loaf until you reach a point that feels comfortable.  If you go a slice higher it would feel too much and in that case you would let someone else have the property as you don’t see enough value.

By approaching this process this way, it will enable you to offer an amount that you are confident with and if you are unsuccessful… you will be ok with it… because someone paid more… and that’s up to them.

However, this won’t take into consideration things like position, financing, solicitors and timescale… but let’s face it the main factor when vendors are considering offers is the price.

If you would like to talk about best and final offers or how they might affect you, then please give us a call.