Getting the correct mixture and following a symmetric pattern is more important. 

This pattern is not helping small investors like me at all.

Has this helped in your adult life in continuing a pattern of frugality?

If they are doing periodic price drops that is a good thing as it may indicate that they have some motivation to sell it ... in that case, I would see if there is a pattern to the price drops, as in they are dropping $10k every 3 months or something like that ... if that is the case you can time your offer as the price gets closer to a good deal, put it in just before they would normally drop the price, but a bit lower than what you suspect they will drop it to.

If this isn't a pattern for him, I wouldn't charge him just out of courtesy.

You can pull off different floors if you are careful with patterns. 

Laying tile is a bit of an art form.Irregular patterns can increase the cost because they require more cuts, thus more time and materials.If you do these things, the floor should last a very long time.

Each application gets a discard, accept, or put in holding pattern status based on total points.  

You will see a pattern between neighborhoods and the rent to property value ratio.

Invariably, someone will provide a fact pattern that's faintly accurate but is frustrated because there is no one, simple Gordian Knot solution.