MA FSBO Single Family in good location - need advice

[Rachel L.]

Hi BP community -

I'm new to real estate investing and this is the first house I have looked at to use to learn how to crunch the numbers. I would like advice on how to proceed, if this would be worth any further time.

This is a FSBO single family, 6 br, 1 bath. 1st floor is kitchen, living, dining. 2nd floor is 1 bath, 4 bedroom. Attic (finished) 2b bedroom. Unfinished basement. (The bedrooms are small though).

The owner had a print out from Vision Government Solutions, Inc. Has anyone heard of this company and if so, are their appraisal amounts accurate?

The appraisal from that company came out to roughly $270K and there aren't any 6 bedroom/1 bath single family houses in the neighborhood. There are some single family houses with roughly the same amount of living area and less bedrooms and 2 baths. Would those be considered comps close enough?

Also, the owner is asking for $540K (least she will take is $500K). She's basing this number off a duplex sold with 4 bedrooms/2 baths that's a few doors down and was recently sold. She said that she will list the house with an agent if the house she can't sell it herself. Would it be worth my time to educate the seller why comparing her house to a duplex isn't going to give her the right value for her house? Should I even try to put in an offer?

Any advice would be helpful! Thanks in advance!