How Much Should You Offer on a House in Tennessee?

If I had a dollar for every time someone sat down across from me and asked, "So... what should we offer?" I'd probably be writing this from a beach instead of my office.

It's a fair question. Unfortunately, it's also the wrong one.

What buyers usually mean is, "How much below asking should I offer?"

The problem is that there's no formula. If someone tells you to always offer 10% below asking, or to always start low because "the seller will counter," I'd take that advice with a grain of salt.

I've watched homes sell for tens of thousands of dollars over asking, and I've watched others sit for months before finally selling well below list price. Same city. Same month. Completely different outcomes.

That's because the asking price isn't the market value. It's just the number the seller chose to put on the sign.

Sometimes it's right. Sometimes it's intentionally low to attract multiple offers. Sometimes it's... optimistic. I've seen beautiful homes priced too high and average homes priced perfectly. I've also seen sellers pick a number because they "need" that much to buy their next house. The market doesn't really care what they need.

That's the first mindset shift I try to make with buyers.

Stop asking what the seller is asking.

Start asking what the house is actually worth.

Those aren't always the same thing.

One of the first things we do at BuyUnrepped is prepare a comparative market analysis, or CMA. It's not because I want to tell you what to offer. It's because I want you to understand the market before you decide what to offer.

A good CMA isn't just a stack of nearby sales. It's looking at the homes that buyers actually chose instead of this one. Why did the house down the street sell for $25,000 more? Was it bigger? Renovated? On a better lot? Did it include a finished basement? Did it have three competing offers? Context matters far more than any single sale price.

People ask me about Zestimates all the time, too.

I don't hate them.

Seriously—I think they're useful. They're a great place to start.

They're just not a place to stop.

Zillow has never walked through the house you're buying. It doesn't know the roof is at the end of its life. It doesn't know the HVAC barely survived last summer. It doesn't know the crawlspace floods after every heavy rain or that the kitchen was completely renovated six months ago.

A Zestimate is a data point. Nothing more.

One thing that surprises buyers is how rarely the highest offer automatically wins.

Picture yourself as the seller for a minute.

Offer number one is for $525,000. Sounds great. But that buyer wants you to pay their closing costs, needs forty-five days to close, and their financing looks a little shaky.

Offer number two is for $515,000. No closing cost request. Strong conventional financing. A respected local lender. They can close in three weeks.

Which one feels safer?

That's the conversation sellers are actually having.

They're not just comparing numbers. They're comparing risk.

Listing agents know this, too. One of the most common things I hear from them is, "My seller just wants to know which offer is actually going to make it to the closing table."

That's why terms matter.

Price matters too—of course it does—but it's only one part of the picture.

The other mistake I see buyers make is letting emotion drive the math.

I get it.

You walk into a house and immediately picture Christmas morning in the living room. You know exactly where the sectional is going to go. Your dog has already claimed the backyard in your mind.

Meanwhile, the seller is looking at spreadsheets.

Those are two very different perspectives.

That's why I always encourage buyers to pause before they start increasing their offer just because they're afraid of losing.

If this house disappeared tomorrow, would you still feel comfortable with the number you wrote down today?

If the answer is yes, great.

If the answer is, "Honestly, I think I'd regret not going a little higher," that's important too.

Neither answer is wrong. You just need to know which feeling you're making the decision from.

There's another reality that buyers sometimes forget: even if the seller accepts your offer, your lender still has an opinion.

If you're financing the purchase, the lender will usually require an appraisal before approving the loan. If that appraisal comes in lower than the purchase price, you'll likely have another conversation to navigate. Depending on your contract, that could mean renegotiating the price, bringing additional cash to closing, or finding another solution. Winning the bidding war is exciting. Actually closing on the house is the goal.

So what would I do if I were buying a home tomorrow?

I'd spend less time worrying about the asking price and more time understanding the market around the house.

I'd want to know what similar homes have actually sold for.

I'd want to know whether I'm competing against three buyers or fifteen.

I'd want to know if the seller cares more about top dollar or a quick, clean closing.

And then I'd make an offer I could feel good about regardless of what happened next.

Because here's the truth: sometimes you make a strong, well-supported offer and you still lose.

That doesn't mean you made the wrong decision.

It means someone else valued that house more than you did.

Buying a home isn't about winning at all costs. It's about making a decision you'll still be comfortable with after the excitement wears off.

That's ultimately what we're trying to accomplish at BuyUnrepped.

We're not here to tell you what number to write on the contract. That decision belongs to you.

Our job is to make sure you understand the market, the risks, and the strategy well enough that when you sign your offer, you're making an informed decision—not an emotional guess.