How to Increase My Offer Without Outbidding Myself?

[Burt L.]

I had conversations with a seller which have reached an impasse, so to speak. They are not financially distressed - quite well off really - but have two SF they have neglected and are unrentable as the roofs are beyond bad and sheetrock has fallen down inside.

I made the mistake of telling them the ARV is 250K (will never give an ARV again) and that each needs 100K of repairs and I offer 75K per house. They repled that they would like to see a listing of what I would need to do to the houses. Having painted myself into a corner with the ARV, I provided the lists. They then responded - was it 75K for each house for a total of $150? I replied that that is correct and mentioned one other thing I had forgotten on the list.

Communication ended there five days ago, and it will be up to me to re-establish conversation. As often happens, I will likely be told they have received many letters and have another offer, which is of course unconfirmable, but I"m sure they have recieved other letters.

How can I increase my offer without going higher than necessary? A comment such as "I have other projects I am considering and would like to resolve whether to pursue this one further" may be of help.

Would you go up on price more than once in a single conversation? Or perhaps a question such as "What will you need to get this deal done?" How can I best arrive at a sale price without going unnecessarily high and outbidding only myself?

I'm looking for the sequel to the book -The BP Cost Estimating Guide, which may be entitled "The BP Negotiating Guide" which isn't out just yet! Getting these deals will go a along ways towards being able to stay in this field - on a full-time basis anyway.