One of my hobbies is restoring old homes. The wife and I have been in this one for a while and it's pretty much done. We want a bigger yard for the munchkin as well as a new challenge.
BTW, I just heard back from the realtor representing the seller. She was told to relate the message that my offer was "insulting" and that they wouldn't make a counteroffer. In response, I passed on my appraisal of their property. There's nothing like a little cold water splashed in the face of someone who has never seen a bad real estate market.
We had some people a few blocks from us that told friends they were willing to sell their house "by owner" before they listed it with an agent. They were asking $575k for the house (by owner). That was about 10 months ago. The house (now listed with an agent) has an asking price of $399k. I think they got hit with that reality slap. Granted, things weren't as bad 10 months ago as they are now, but even then, I thought they were fairly over-priced. Gramps...
Yeah, my boss offered $900,000 on a house about 1 year ago and were laughed at. It recently sold for about $700,000. I wonder if they're still laughing?