Making an offer
Set your price and terms before negotiation pressure begins
Use your financial plan, comparable evidence and due-diligence findings to prepare a private-sale offer or an auction limit — without relying on the listing price, agent pressure or last-minute emotion.
What Delora will and won't do here
Helps you
Understand price evidence, separate price from terms, set your own ceiling before negotiating, and know the rules that govern private sales and auctions in Victoria.
Won't do
Tell you what to offer or bid, predict a vendor's reserve, draft contract clauses, or suggest raising your limit because "there's another offer" or the property is "on the market".
Six principles behind every offer guide
1. Price and terms are separate
A higher price with protective conditions is not the same offer as the same price unconditionally.
2. The limit comes from you
Delora can help calculate a purchase ceiling; competition, agent pressure or a rejected offer are never reasons this site suggests raising it.
3. Evidence before negotiation
Build an offer from financial limits, comparable sales and due-diligence findings — not the listing price alone.
4. Agent statements are unverified
"There are other offers" or "the reserve is around this" are recorded as agent statements, not independently verified facts.
5. Auction prep happens before auction day
Most auction purchases carry no cooling-off and can't be made conditional after a successful bid — finance, inspections and contract review need to be done in advance.
6. No sunk-cost escalation
Inspection fees, conveyancing costs and time already spent researching are never a reason to exceed your limit.
Guides
The complete guide to making an offer and buying at auction
Price versus terms, private sale versus auction, conditions, deposits, negotiation, and what happens after your offer or bid is accepted.
Understanding price guides: reserve, asking, estimated and indicative price
Why these are four different numbers, what the Statement of Information must disclose, and how Victoria's underquoting rules work.
Making a private-sale offer
How a private-sale offer is actually made, common conditions, the deposit, negotiation, and when the sale becomes binding.
Buying at auction
Auction rules, vendor and dummy bids, bidding advances, being 'on the market', and what to do if a property is passed in.
Already published, linked not duplicated
These already exist as their own real, sourced pages rather than being rebuilt here.
The cooling-off period
The real length, start date, refund calculation and full exclusion list — including why most auction and pre-auction purchases get none.
HubProperty due diligence
What to have resolved — contract, Section 32, planning, owners corporation — before an offer or bid becomes unconditional.
GuideSafe budget vs. borrowing capacity
Where a purchase ceiling should start — before duty, fees and a buffer are added.