First of all, every offer is facing different circumstances, so the advice changes with each situation.

But, not every buyer wants to low-ball.

Evey buyer that is not properly educated and prepared  (controlled- dare I say),  by their agent does. In the absence  of agent leadership, buyers will act as if. Desmond, you are the expert, act as such and they will respect you and your advice. Know your numbers and be ready to show them.

Expectations, comps, competition, DOM, asking to sales price ratios, time of year, type of market, price range, type of buyer, type of offer: cash, VA, FHA, Conventional, etc. all have to do with the answer to your question.

Desmond Neoh I guide them through the current market and suggest close to market value. Could be more or less than listing price.

It depends, there are many factors to take into consideration case-by-case.

It depends and sometimes I suggest offering listing price itself.

Depends on many other factors.

Know your market and you will know the answer!

Thomas J. Nelson, Realtor gave you a great answer. There is no one size fits all template to an offer. Educating the buyer using all the available information you have is key. Some will still want to low ball, but I always ask if they lose the house will it have been worth it to lowball?

I leave it up to my customers - although if they are making a very low offer - if I feel it is too low I will advize - if it is ridiculous such as offerring $100,000 on a $200,000 and the property is worth the $200k or there abouts, I won't write the offer and tell them I can't help them

That all depends on the home, the location and the condition.

It's case by case. We offer what comps and condition indicate what the value should be as long as that price doesn't go above what buyer can afford.

Each offer is different and it depends on the home, do your comps and advise accordingly. 

There is no one size fits all answer to your question since each situation will be different. Prepare a CMA and discuss the findings as well as market conditions with your buyers then make an informed decision.

If the avg SOLD/LIST=100% in the neighborhood there are 5 offers. Mathematically, there are 2 offers higher than yours. You are out as #3.

depends.  market conditions, inventory in the price range, list price and CMA price

Depends on the property, buyer and their loan.  How bad they want the property and if they have lost a previous contract due to low balling.  

My advice depends upon the property, the market and the buyers as well as the sellers. 

Depends upon the property.

depends how bad they want it

It depends on several things. What is the home worth? Have they made several offers on other properties and they didn't win the bid? How much can they afford?

I base all offer on comparable sales and trying to get my client the home at the best price.  Offering too low and losing the home is not my goal and I'll explain to the client the cost of low-balling an offer.

It really depends on the market and the property. Last week I helped some buyers out. They wouldn't listen. Came in VERY low on a great house. They lost out because two other better offers came in. 

It depends! In some cases yes.. in others no..no pat answer.

Depends on where the listing price is in relation to the value, and how much they want the property.

Depends on the house and the circumstances. In a hot market with a hot house, we tell buyers to offer the quantity that they would be willing to pay - and our advice is to come as close to list price as they can afford if they want the house and can afford it. Rarely do we offer above list, unless there are known multiple offers, but, again, it's dependent on the buyers' circumstances.

I provide the comps.

I "advise" them by preparing a CMA of recent sales of similar homes in the area where they are buying.  The client decides what to offer, not the buyer's agent.

Desmond Neoh I never tell my clients what to offer on a property. I give them the facts so they can make an informed decision.

It depends.  On the buyer, the situation, how many offers are in, how hot the property is, etc.  Buyers make the ultimate decision, all I can do is advise them on what the course of action is that would likely have the best results.  If they want to low ball, I advise them that they likely will not get the house and that in my experience sellers get insulted and they will not counter back.

My best advice is that your first offer shows how interested in the home you are.  If you come in low, the seller may think you are not committed to the purchase, even if they choose your offer, so they may not be as willing to enter into escrow with you.

That's a tough one because not all list prices are equal.  You need to figure out the most likely sales price of the property, figure out if it is priced below, at or above market.  Then you need to figure out if you are competing in multiple offers, or are the first offer in.  There is no one size fits all answer.

I talk to my clients about how bad they want the home and guide them from that point

Impossible to answer in a general question.  It depends on a plethora of variables.

We offer our clients the comps and determine if there are multiple offers. We let our clients decide.

Depends on specific situation - how long home has been on market, at what price, where you think price should be, how motivated all parties are and so on. You need to do some homework.

Depends on the market conditions.  Right now, low ballers aren't getting a house because there are usually multiple offers at or above list.

Anyone who advises needs to also disclose that TIME is of the essence too

It depends on the property.

It depends on the buyer.

This is not a one  size fits all business or a one size fits all strategy.   

It depends if we have competition on the property . But I do Price Counseling

Thomas J. Nelson, Realtor - has a great answer for this one.

It depends on the situation.

I ask them what they want to offer after showing them the comps...

Offers need to relate to the current market conditions.

As an ABR (Accredited Buyer's Agent) with the majority of buyers that I work with, I do a Free Market Analaysis of the property before we write an offer.  There are so many different situations:  The market, current inventory, value, location, condition and price.  I recommend what I believe is the best offer so that my buyer wins and becomes the New Owner of the home of their dreams and sometimes that means writing an offer for more than the asking price.

there is a difference between getting the home and getting a deal. at times those lines intersect. the buyer must discern how much they want it and how much they can afford..and what happens if it doesnt appraise