With an offers-from price (in Dutch listings "bieden vanaf") you ask buyers to bid from a set amount upwards, while an asking price is the amount you are prepared to negotiate on. Which of the two works better depends mainly on how many buyers your home attracts: the more interest, the better an offers-from price fits. Either way, you as the seller decide whether to sell and to whom.
What is the difference between an offers-from price and an asking price?
An asking price is the amount you put your home on the market for. A buyer can bid below it, exactly that amount or more. With an offers-from price, the amount is the starting point instead. You let buyers know that you expect bids from that amount upwards.
The difference lies mostly in the signal. An asking price invites negotiation. An offers-from price says the negotiation will go upwards.
What the 2026 NVM figures show
On 8 October 2026 the NVM, the Dutch association of estate agents, published its figures for the third quarter. For almost two thirds of the homes sold, the buyer paid more than the asking price. A year earlier that was 71 percent. A home was on the market for 31 days on average, against 29 days a year earlier, and the average sale price came to € 503,000, up 1.8 percent. The NVM calls it more choice for buyers.
In the first quarter (figures from 16 April 2026), two thirds of homes also sold above the asking price, on average 3.7 percent above it. Homes then took 32 days to sell, and the average price was € 485,000.
Paying over the asking price is still normal in 2026, but less of a given than a year ago. In over a third of sales the buyer paid the asking price or less. An offers-from price pays off when several buyers bid against each other. If only one bidder turns up, that advantage disappears and you have already named your own floor.
You decide, even when someone bids the offers-from price
A bid at or above the offers-from price does not oblige you to sell, and neither does a bid at the asking price. The NVM puts it plainly on its page Bieden op een huis (bidding on a house, updated 18 June 2026): it is up to the seller to decide whether, and to whom, the home is awarded.
You do not have to pick the highest bid. A buyer who does not need a financing condition, or who can work with your moving date, may be the better buyer. We run the negotiation and advise you, and then you decide.
In a closed tender, no information about the bids received is shared under any circumstances.
If we receive a higher bid from another party while you already have a verbal agreement with a buyer, the NVM says you have options that differ per sales method. In a sale without a closing date, you can reject the new bid and stick to the agreement. You can also withdraw the earlier agreement and negotiate with the new bidder or accept their bid. Or you tell the first buyer that a new bid has come in, without naming its amount or conditions. Both parties then get the chance to bid again within a set period, after which you decide. That can repeat until you and the buyer have signed the purchase agreement.
Since 1 January 2023 NVM agents selling existing homes have used a digital bidding log. The bids on homes we sell go into that log too.
What it means when you sell in Almere
In Almere the average sale price in the first quarter of 2026 was around € 461,000, roughly € 4,183 per square metre.
Suppose you list your home with an offers-from price of € 461,000 and the highest bid lands at the national average of 3.7 percent above it: you would sell for around € 478,000, roughly € 17,000 above the offers-from price. That 3.7 percent is a national average from the first quarter, not a promise, and we do not have NVM figures for Almere for the second and third quarters.
In our listings at the end of July 2026, almost every home was offered with an offers-from price. In the segment below one million euros, where we sell many homes, an offers-from price has become something of a standard. In our experience, viewers usually do not read the whole listing text and are used to homes being offered this way. If we chose a higher asking price, leaving room to negotiate downwards, it would look as if we were asking far too much next to competing homes. That makes it hard to go back to the ordinary asking price we sold homes with for years.
When an ordinary asking price fits better
An offers-from price needs competition. If your home is in a price range or neighbourhood with fewer buyers, it can work against you. The first bidder starts at the amount you named as your own floor, and if no second bidder comes along, the price does not go up. For homes in the higher price range, where buyers are few, we ourselves still often work with an ordinary asking price.
During the market appraisal we look at how many buyers are active in your price range and your neighbourhood.
Frequently asked questions
Is an offers-from price the same as an asking price?
No. With an asking price you may end up below the amount. With an offers-from price you signal that you expect bids from that amount up.
Do I have to sell if someone bids the offers-from price?
No. According to the NVM it is up to the seller to decide whether, and to whom, the home is awarded, also when the bid is at or above the offers-from price.
Can a buyer bid below the offers-from price?
Yes, a buyer can. We let you know about any bid below the offers-from price. Your offers-from price has made clear that you do not expect a lower bid, but you decide whether to award the home, and seller and buyer do sometimes reach agreement below the offers-from price.
Want to know which price suits your home?
Start with the free market appraisal. You hear what your home could fetch in the current market and whether we would advise an offers-from price or an asking price. Request your free market appraisal or drop by our office in the centre of Almere. You can read more about how we work on Estate agent in Almere.
Further reading: What does an estate agent cost when selling in Almere? and Choosing an estate agent in Almere: what to look for
