Ask Price
Ask Price is the initial listed price for a piece of real estate.
It’s important to understand that, in the real estate world, there’s no such thing as a fixed price when buying or selling a property. Fixed price is a concept you can only apply when the product in question has scale, so you might have a fixed price on rental properties of a building, however, when buying or selling a property, the homeowner does not set a price so an interested home buyer can acquire it by merely paying that value.
It is more of a bargaining routine, where the home seller sets a price - the so-called ask price - he/she believes corresponds to the worth of the property. Then, it’s up to the interested home buyer to make his/her own assessment of worth - the so-called offer price - and make an offer to the home seller. If both agree to it - the so-called Fair Market Value - the house is sold.
Although the asking price is thoroughly studied by the homeowner and the professionals surrounding him/her - especially the agents and the Appraiser - the most common scenario is to have the home buyer offering a lower amount of money than the one the home seller set as the property’s asking price. When that happens, the home seller usually makes a counteroffer and both of them go back and forth until they can agree on a fair market value for the property.
There are sometimes when you’re in a Seller’s Market or the house is so unique, that a home buyer might make an offer higher than the ask price in order to secure the house. It’s rare, but it happens.
Real Estate Advice:
Take a look at our Real Estate FAQs. Maybe the answer to those frequently asked questions will help you understand the big picture better.
And check The OFFICIAL Real Estate Agent Directory® to find an agent to help you with whatever you can't find on our website (if that's possible!)
Popular Real Estate Terms
Also called interim financing. A mortgage that provides the funds necessary for the building or construction of a real estate project. The project can be a residential subdivision, a ...
Represents a means of appraising a building by simply multiplying its square foot cost by the total amount of square feet in the structure being evaluated. Two or more buildings may then be ...
The total return from holding a real estate investment for the holding period of time. The computation follows: For a mutual fund investing in a real estate, the return is in the form ...
The practice of acquiring land for a future use. For example, a franchising company is projecting rapid nationwide expansion over the next five years. In order to prepare for the expansion, ...
Unincorporated combination (roll-up) of limited partnerships in a real estate together as a group. It is usually more comprehensive, financially sound, and marketable than individual ...
One who has died with a valid will in effect. ...
a rental in which the lessor pays all operating costs such as taxes, utilities, insurance, and maintenance. It is usually a short-term lease and a common arrangement. Typically there is no ...
The definition of a service fee or brokers fee in real estate is a flat fee paid to a real estate agent or broker in addition to the commission for the sale or purchase. This is to cover ...
People say time is money. The old-age cliche applies more than ever in our case as we define what the Time Value of Money (TVM) means. You’ll find the term time value for money ...

Have a question or comment?
We're here to help.