Sellers presented with a lower than expected offer for the property they are selling, would be well advised to consider the compounded "Time Value of Money".

Say for instance you were listing a home for sale at $740K but would surely take any offer above $710K. A Buyer makes a final offer of say $680K, or approximately $30K less. Should you 1) flatly decline their last offer or 2) accept this offer?

Though there is no one right answer, how you proceed should take into consideration your short term plus long term goals plus considerations for quality of life. For instance if you are fortunate to have little or no mortgage, were under no pressure to buy again in the near future and could invest most if not all of the proceeds, I believe most money managers would likely agree on going for the sure thing and investing the net cash in high yielding money markets or other savings account. Here's some simple math, $600K of the proceeds reinvested at 5% APY for one and one-half years would net over $30K after taxes, and this is a sure thing. There is one other significant advantage to this approach, the reduction of stress associated with waiting for another equal or better offer that may not present itself for a good long time, not a sure thing... Put a $ amount on this and the net goes way up.

So if you are selling property and feel you are under no pressure take anything less than what you feel you deserve or what you think the buyer can afford, think again about what you might be putting yourself through if you walk away from a half way decent offer to purchase. The easy way might be best, especially when you can make your money work for you.