Seeking thoughts
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Anonymous
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Single family in Northern Virginia. Not in Oakton or McLean high school type of pyramid. Not in Herndon high school type of pyramid. Somewhere in between level of schools - so not top notch but not the worst.
Over the grade 3400 sq feet Under the grade 1200 sq feet and is half finished 5 bed 5 bath 12500 sq feet lot size Good neighborhood but not walking to shopping/groceries Mid 1980s build Imperfections in the house like uneven floor, some appliances not in great condition but major things like roof and HVAC decent. Overall structure decent. Seller doesn't want to negotiate on the price and doesn't want to offer credit. Priced at $1.2M. WWYD? |
Anonymous
| Sounds like a steal |
Anonymous
| You're missing something. |
Anonymous
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Flooding on lot? Water in basement?
Proximity to highway noise? |
Anonymous
| Buy it |
Anonymous
| What did your inspector say? |
Anonymous
No flooding or water related issues. Close to main road but not too noisy. No blatant flaws/issues but a plethora of minor issues which quickly add up. Spouse thinks a house should be void of flaws at that price or the seller should offer some credit to fix things. Seller/seller's agent is firm on price. Their attitude is take it or leave it. We have liked the house overall but would have appreciated some negotiation. Posted here to get thoughts from experts/experienced buyers. |
Anonymous
| If the house has been on the market for at least a few weeks, I would walk. The seller can't be choosy at that point and should be on the verge of doing a price reduction. But if it's been less than that, I can understand why the seller isn't budging. |
Anonymous
Their asking price for 4600 finished square feet in an average school district on a decent sized lot isn’t choosy… I paid similar for a piece of land that came with a shack in Arlington. Even places like Burke are pushing high 6 figures / low 1s now. Affordability is gone. |
Anonymous
I understand that people on this board are obsessed with only a few extremely expensive areas, but what OP described is not hard to find outside of those areas. Took me one minute to find these: https://www.redfin.com/VA/Alexandria/5650-Tower-Hill-Cir-22315/home/9841737 https://www.redfin.com/VA/Falls-Church/3402-Walnut-Hill-Ct-22042/home/9634484 |
Anonymous
It isn’t like you have leverage. Offer what you want and they will either take it or not if they aren’t going to counter. You don’t ask for negotiation. You simply offer what you think it is worth. Call the bluff. |
Anonymous
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They put it at that price knowing the uneven floors and the not great appliances. If the appliances work they work. Arguing over that is silly. Uneven floors are another issue and any major things found during inspection are another issue.
When we bought our house the water heater was 15 years old and the electric panel was right next to it. It had to be moved and we needed a new water heater. They had an old furnace (think 30+years old). But the furnace and water heater still worked so our agent said if it works, it works. We got money on a major issue we found during inspection but it only covered about half our costs. The sellers offered to fix it, but we were concerned they would do a cheap quick fix and we wanted it done a certain way, so they paid the people we used directly and that ended up covering half of it (think all in it was >$50K). You pick your battles. No house is perfect especially in a hot market. We got a water heater right away and when moving the panel found extra issues with the electrical we had to fix, but that is home ownership. We didn't get money for either from the seller. The furnace lasted us a few years and we recently replaced it. A friend of mine is selling a house and went with a lower offer with no contingencies because they didn't want to deal with a back and forth after an inspection. It is your money so you need to decide what you're comfortable with spending and doing. |
Anonymous
| You did get an inspection done, right? Figure out what needs to be fixed and how much you will need to spend, ballpark. If it fits your budget then make the offer. Otherwise move on. That’s what we did when we were in the market. We went to see the properties we were really interested in with the realtor and inspector, and then used the information decide whether an offer would be feasible or not. |
Anonymous
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There's so much more to discuss than take it or walk:
-Do you need a house now and do you have other options? What's your timeline? -Spouse is opposed - is your spouse otherwise a reasonable person? What is their major objection? Of everything you said, the uneven floors would really bother me and I'd always be annoyed about that. So proceed with caution. -Comps, comps, comps. Do you have an agent? What do they think? -Location, location, location. I could sell my house in a minute, even with all its imperfections and old HVAC, because I'm in a desirable location just outside the beltway and with the type of school pyramid you describe. It that true of the house you are looking at? Take all of the above into consideration and make an offer or don't. If you make an offer and the seller rejects it, that's not necessarily the end of the story. Maybe no one else buys it and they come back to you in a few weeks. |
Anonymous
Maybe learn to read? They said it was in an average school district. Alexandria and Falls Church (not McLean zoned FC or FCC) have notoriously bad schools. Hence the prices of the homes you shared. Run the search again with a minimum school rating across elementary - middle - high of 6+ and come back with what you get. |