Is 9% below asking reasonable after 119 days for a Toronto country home?

[emery.moss]

My preferred outcome is a firm but workable offer, although the lack of reliable completed sales makes the price difficult to justify. The Toronto country home is listed at C$1,397,000, has been on the market for 119 days and requires updating. Similar advertised properties do not tell me where buyers are actually agreeing deals.

I am considering starting around 9% lower, at roughly C$1.271 million. Financing is in good shape, I can provide appropriate proof and I have some flexibility on completion, but I do not want those strengths confused with a willingness to accept avoidable deposit or appraisal exposure. Would you present the figure first and negotiate from there, or make it conditional on evidence about the property’s condition? Which inspection and financing protections would you retain even if the seller wants a cleaner offer?

 

[lila_miles]

The percentage itself is less important than whether the number is defensible. Present it as your valuation based on condition and the limited completed evidence, not as a penalty for 119 days on market. Keep the wording brief and let the price speak.

I would not waive inspection merely to soften a low offer. Any financing condition also needs wording that protects you if the lender’s appraisal creates a gap; have the exact terms checked locally.

 

[cyclesAndGarden]

Has the listing price changed during those 119 days? That could reveal more than the total time available. I’d also want to know whether “updating” means finishes and appliances or expensive building systems.

Country homes can be hard to compare because lot, water, access and outbuildings may differ. Ask for completed sales with genuinely similar property characteristics, even if they are less recent or slightly farther away.

 

[MinaGale]

I wouldn’t assume 119 days gives you 9% negotiating room. A distinctive country property can sit because the buyer pool is narrow, while the seller remains perfectly willing to wait. Starting there is sensible only if you are comfortable losing it or receiving no counteroffer.

Try to learn whether the seller values price, a particular completion date, or certainty most. Your flexibility may be worth more to them than moving a little higher immediately.

 

[PracticalBeam]

Make the offer easy to evaluate: stated price, credible financing proof, a couple of completion-date options, clearly drafted conditions and a reasonable response deadline. Avoid an artificially short deadline; after four months, pressure tactics are unlikely to improve the tone.

Before signing, understand exactly when the deposit becomes payable, what happens to it if a condition is not satisfied, and which deadlines you must meet. That exposure matters more than making the offer look unusually clean.

 

[YaraCrane]

Be careful not to charge twice for visible updating—once through the 9% discount and again through repair credits. Base the initial price on the home as seen. Then use the inspection to identify material issues that were not apparent, rather than reopening every dated finish.

Also decide your appraisal-gap limit before negotiating. If the lender values it below the accepted price, how much extra cash, if any, would you willingly contribute?

 

[amber_chalk]

I agree with keeping the explanation short, but I’d have the conditions drafted for the specific Ontario transaction rather than relying on generic language. “Financing in good shape” does not necessarily remove valuation risk on an unusual property.

I’d ask the seller’s representative about preferred completion timing and whether there have been earlier offers, without expecting full disclosure of motivation. Then set three numbers privately: opening offer, maximum purchase price, and maximum appraisal gap.

 

[amber_chalk]

One addition to my previous comment: don’t let a repair-credit discussion replace inspection protection. A credit can address an agreed cost, but it does not help if the inspection reveals something that changes your willingness to buy at all. Keep the right to make that decision, and strengthen the offer through completion flexibility and solid financing evidence instead.