My Landlord Is willing to Sell - Help !

[Faisal Farnas]

BP Experts,

I am currently renting a townhome in a desirable location. I am looking to to buy my first home. I emailed my landlord asking if the house was for sale and he replied that he would be willing to consider it.
The house is in a good location but it needs new carpets and some light fixes (the oven is old and the bath tub is old and needs replacement). It was built in 1994. A very similar townhome on the same street was sold last year for $115k.

I need help on what to do next in order to come up with a good offer. Any tips would be greatly appreciated.
Here are a few thoughts I have in mind:
1) They don't need to pay 6% for a realtor since I am already willing to buy.

2) If they don't sell then I will be looking for a different place which means they will have to go through the whole process of screening and finding suitable tenants.

3) The house won't sell or rent easily without renovations.

What would you offer if you were me? Should I get a realtor to help out?

[Faisal Farnas]

Great tips on negotiation, Will.

Sandy, you read my mind, my next question was about using a realtor to get the comps. It seems that Zillow has only 1 property that is almost identical, the rest are not really comparable. I think I am going to start looking for a local agent.

Thanks.