Successfully closed in Essex earlier this month. We didn’t pay much attention to the list price and the amount over we should bid, we just looked at recent comps and decided on a bid amount based on that. All the houses we looked at were priced artificially low to trigger bidding wars, so the list price was basically meaningless. I know it’s really discouraging. Good luck!!

We’re doing the opposite move this summer (Bay Area to Essex county). We’re planning to make a fun road trip of it, which will also allow me to schlep my house plants.

If you have the time and maybe a copilot, driving could be fun. If you don’t have those things, shipping cars seems pretty common but might be pricy.