How Much Below Asking Price Should You REALLY Offer?

Hey, it’s Tālon —

You find a house you love.

It's listed for $300,000.

And immediately the question becomes:

“Okay… but what should we ACTUALLY offer?”

$295,000?

$285,000?

$270,000?

Every buyer wants to get a good deal—but there's a big difference between negotiating and throwing out a number just because you can.

Here's how I'd think about it 👇

💰 1. There's No Magic Percentage

I wish I could tell buyers:

“Always offer 5% below asking.”

But that's not how it works.

A home that's been listed for two days and already has multiple interested buyers is completely different from one that's been sitting for 90 days.

Before deciding what to offer, I'd want to know:

👉 How long has it been listed?

👉 Has the price already been reduced?

👉 What have similar homes actually sold for?

👉 Are there other offers?

👉 How motivated does the seller appear to be?

The list price is only one piece of the puzzle.

📅 2. Days on Market Can Change the Conversation

This is one of the first things I'd look at.

If a great house hits the market Friday and you see it Saturday…

Coming in WAY below asking could cost you the house.

But if that same property has been sitting for months?

Now we may have a very different conversation.

The longer a home sits, the more questions I'd start asking about where the seller might actually be willing to make a deal.

🤝 3. Price Isn't the Only Thing You Can Negotiate

This is where buyers sometimes get tunnel vision.

Everyone wants to say:

“I got $10,000 off the house!”

But sometimes I'd rather negotiate something else.

Depending on the situation, we might look at:

👉 Seller-paid closing costs

👉 Repairs

👉 A rate buydown

👉 Appliances or other items

👉 Different contract terms

Because ultimately, I'm less concerned with bragging about how far below asking we offered…

And more concerned with getting you the best overall deal.

🧐 Why This Matters

Here's the mistake I don't want buyers making:

Picking a random number below asking and calling it a negotiation strategy.

Sometimes I'd recommend being aggressive.

Sometimes I'd recommend coming in close to asking.

And in the right situation, there may even be a reason to offer the full asking price.

It depends entirely on the house, the competition, the seller, and the numbers.

▶️ So… How Low Would I Actually Offer?

That's exactly what I break down in the full video:

How Much Below Asking Price Should You Offer on a House?

I walk through:

👉 How I evaluate an asking price

👉 When a low offer might actually work

👉 When I'd be careful about going too low

👉 How days on market affects negotiating leverage

👉 Other things I'd negotiate besides price

👉 And how I'd structure an offer if I were buying the house myself

Watch here: How Much Below Asking Price Should You Offer on a House?

P.S. Never offer $20,000 below asking just because you want to say you got $20,000 off.

If the house was overpriced by $30,000, you might still be paying too much.

And if it was already priced extremely well, you might lose a great house trying to save another $5,000.

The goal isn't to get the biggest discount. It's to get the best deal.

If you find a home in Northeast Arkansas and want to know what I'd offer on it, reply “OFFER” and send me the address. I'll take a look at the numbers with you.