Trouble figuring out “Best and Final Offer”

[Domingo Alpajora]

SCENARIO

Seller telling me there are multiple bids on a duplex I found with good cash flow. I am trying to to figure out how much to bid.

Listing price - $88,900

Rehab - 25k-30k

ARV 160k

Bottom unit rents for around 1.5k

Top unit rents around 1k

Fresh on the market for about 10 days

I have been pre-approved for an fha 203k loan with no issues covering the upfront costs and monthly payments on whatever offer I submit.

PROBLEM

How much over should I bid knowing it will cut into my equity when I refinance out? My real estate agent tells me to be more on the conservative side because you never know how many other ppl are bidding or even if there are any other bids at all! Tells me sometimes the seller will lie to get a higher offer?

MY THOUGHTS

I want to bid another 10-15k over just to be sure I get this deal. I will still cash flow nice but lose a bit of equity.

My bigger goal is to get my first deal for my resume as I am also in the process of getting my Real Estate License. I have a private money lender that I want to pitch myself too that has already openly invited a dialogue with him when I am ready.

SOLUTION?

Am I naive for wanting to bid that much higher just to get this deal? Should I be suspicious if it is true that there really are not any competing offers? Any advice would be greatly appreciated. My deadline is in 5 days

[Nathan Gesner]

You're trying to figure out what the other parties are thinking. It's impossible.

Here's my suggestion: bid what you think it's worth to you.

Don't worry about what others might offer. Don't worry about trying to get a home-run deal and taking the seller to the cleaners. If you think the property is worth $86,000 then offer that. If you think it's worth $92,000 then offer that.

I've seen too many buyers keep their offer low because they wanted to get a really good deal, only to lose out by $1,000 or less. Then they complain they should have gone higher because it was worth more. If it's worth more, pay more. Just make sure you are offering a price that makes sense for your investment plan; don't get caught up in the emotions.