1. Yes.
2. "maximum affordable price"? How can you know Your max price is match marketing value? If late on, buyer find you purposely push offer too high and sue you, what you do?
3. I don't think so. Sometime listing agent / bank purposely delay offer cut off time. If you make a offer on first day, say $300K, then bank will tell next agent: See, I have an above listing price offer $300K on hand already. If you want to make the offer, you have to be $310K min. Then tell next, next agent $320k min, etc. End with first offer become the bottom. I think the best way is make the offer one day before cut off time and call the listing agent: How many offers you have so far? Any cash offer or not? Any offer above listing price? What's your best offer so far (sometime listing agnet will say or post thier web site).
Sometime, bank will cut off the offer once they get an offer they like. Then, you are right.
4. Yes.
5. Yes.
6. Yes. Nowdays, it is hard to deal with bank for credit.
7. Yes.
8. Yes.
9. I always do that.
10. Yes.
11. Yes, YES, YES !!!
