Canny.scot Get the number · £25

Know what
to bid.

Scotland runs on sealed bids and a document the seller paid for. Canny is an independent read of the Home Report and the local numbers: a realistic value, an opening offer, and a hard ceiling, back within 48 hours.

Nobody pays us but you. Not the agent, not the surveyor, not a lender. One property, one page, no subscription.

  • Backed by 30 years inside Scottish estate agency
  • Every report checked by a human before it's sent
  • Can't add value on your property? Full refund
Your bid ladder 2-bed flat · example

The bank lends against the Home Report value. Every pound above it is your cash.

Opening offer£198,000
Extra cash needed£0
Home Report value£205,000
Extra cash needed£0
Canny ceiling£214,500
Extra cash needed£9,500
Where we'd stop, and why, in writing.
The panic bid£226,000
Extra cash needed£21,000

Built per property from sold prices, the Home Report, and what the Category 2s will really cost.

Winning bids in hot Scottish markets routinely land ~10% over Home Report value. On a £205k flat, guessing that number wrong costs thousands, in cash the bank won't lend you. Getting it right costs £25.

What's in the number

One page. Every figure you need before the closing date.

Sealed bids, no counters, no feedback. You get one shot. These are the six things it should be based on.

Realistic value range

Built from actual sold prices near the property. Not the asking price, and not just the surveyor's figure.

Opening offer & hard ceiling

Where to start, where to stop, and how both shift if it goes to a closing date.

Cash cost of every bid

Lenders lend against the Home Report value. We show exactly how much of each bid level must come from your own pocket.

Category 2s, costed

What "further investigation recommended" actually means in pounds, at real Scottish trade prices.

What the report doesn't say

Missing factoring arrangements, unconsented alterations, questionnaire answers that don't add up.

Rental history of the building

Whether the flat, or half the stair, sits on the landlord register, and what that means for repairs and your offer.

How it works

Send two things. Get one page back.

1

Send the listing & Home Report

The listing link plus the Home Report PDF, free to download from any Scottish listing.

2

We read it properly

Every grading, every hedge, every questionnaire answer, checked against sold prices and public records.

3

Your report in 48 hours

Plain English, every number justified. Bidding on several properties? Ask about a bundle.

Honesty, both ways

What Canny is not.

Not a survey

Nobody can see behind plasterboard from a PDF. We tell you what the existing survey is hedging on and what the hedge is likely to cost. We don't replace it.

Not legal advice

Canny is independent research and information. Your solicitor still submits the offer, and should.

Not magic

If the Home Report is thin, we say so, and tell you which questions to ask before you bid, instead of pretending we know.

See it first

What the report looks like.

A sample one-pager, details changed. Every number arrives with its evidence: nothing to decode, nothing padded.

CANNY REPORT 2-bed lower flat · Fife · Home Report read 14 Jul

Our read: worth bidding. The value is real, the competition is modest, and the roof is your lever. Ceiling £214,500, walk away above it.

Realistic sale range£201k–£212k
Opening offer£198,000
Hard ceiling£214,500
Cash needed at ceiling£9,500

The evidence: three relevant solds within 400m, last nine months.

2-bed upper, same streetFeb£203,500dated kitchen
2-bed lower, next stairApr£209,000similar condition
2-bed upper, 400mJun£211,750renewed roof

The June sale had the roof done. This one hasn't. That gap is where our ceiling comes from.

Competition read: Two notes of interest as of 14 July, on the market 19 days. If a closing date is set, bid the ceiling. If not, open at £198,000 and make them come back to you.

Category 2s, costed: Consumer unit pre-1990s, no certificate on file. Budget £2,200 to £2,800. Flat roof to rear "nearing end of serviceable life": £3,500 to £5,000 within five years. Both priced from current Scottish trade rates.

Your offer letter: Three lines citing the electrics and the roof, worded for your solicitor to lift straight into the offer.

What the report doesn't say: No factoring arrangement or sinking fund mentioned for common repairs. Ask the selling agent in writing before bidding.

Landlord register: This flat isn't registered. Two of the other five in the stair are. Expect slower agreement on common repairs, and price the roof accordingly.

The full cost at ceiling: LBTT £1,530. ADS only if this is a second property. Legals and searches £600 to £900. Cash over Home Report value £9,500. Total cash beyond deposit: roughly £11,900.

Shown here: roughly half. The full report runs about two pages, every figure with its working.

Fair questions

Asked & answered.

Why not just ask my solicitor what to offer?

Ask them, genuinely. Most will give you a number from experience, over the phone, without written reasoning. Canny gives you a documented rationale: comparable sold prices, costed defects, and the cash consequence of each bid level, on paper. Take it into that conversation and you'll have a better one.

Is this just AI reading my Home Report?

AI does the heavy lifting; it's very good at 52-page documents. Every report is then checked by a person before it goes out, and the offer logic is built on decades of Scottish estate agency experience, not guesswork.

The Home Report is the seller's document. Can it be trusted at all?

It's a defensive document, not an empty one. What the surveyor hedges on, photographs, and conspicuously doesn't say all carry signal, if you know how to read it. That's the job.

What if I lose the bid?

Most buyers bid on several properties before winning one. Back within a month with another property? Your next report is £15.

Does the seller or their agent ever see this?

Never. The report goes to you and nobody else. Your bid strategy stays yours. That's rather the point of a blind bidding system.

I'm buying from outside Scotland. Is this for me?

Especially for you. Nothing about the Scottish system works like England or anywhere else. Home Reports, offers over, blind closing dates: all of it is different, and you may not be able to view in person. We read what you can't go and see.

Get your report

£25. Within 48 hours.

Send the listing link now. We'll reply by email with payment and where to send the Home Report PDF.

No payment now. You'll get a reply from a person, usually within a few hours, with a payment link. Closing date within 48 hours? Say so. A 24-hour rush costs £10 more. If we can't add value on your property, we'll say so and refund you in full.

Just a question?

Ask before you order.

Not sure your property suits, or whether the timing works with your closing date? Ask. A person replies, usually the same day, and your email is used for nothing else.

Get your report · £25