In the UK housing market, the average discount to the asking price is currently around 3.9% to 4.5% (roughly £10,000–£16,000), representing the highest levels in recent years. In some regions like London and the South East, this discount can average up to 6.1%, or roughly £25,000.
A 20% discount is particularly attractive because it offers substantial savings – much more than the typical 10% you might see elsewhere. The math is simple, but the impact on your budget can be huge.
An equity discount rate range of 12% to 20%, give or take, is likely to be considered reasonable in a business valuation. This is about in line with the long-term anticipated returns quoted to private equity investors, which makes sense, because a business valuation is an equity interest in a privately held company.
Standard retail discounts typically hover around 10 percent, but industry practices reveal significant variation among different brands, with some offering substantially deeper price cuts to attract customers.
What is Discount Rate? | Learn with Finance Strategists | Under 3 Minutes
Is 10% a good discount rate?
A discount rate of 10% is commonly used, as it is generally around the return that firms make on their other investments. In some organizations, it is known as a “hurdle” rate.
Discounting more than 20% has the potential to decrease revenue per transaction, especially for discounts over 50%, even with unit sales increasing compared to unit sales when items are discounted between 0-10%.
For example, on a $20 T-shirt, a discount of 25% off may be perceived as greater than $5 off because 25 is greater than 5. This won't make much of a difference with the average person, but on such a large scale the idea has promise.”
Following a review, having regard to the rate of return a claimant could reasonably expected to receive if they invested their damages, the Lord Chancellor has determined the discount rate be increased from -0.25% to +0.5%, effective from 11 January 2025.
In corporate finance, a discount rate is the rate of return used to discount future cash flows back to their present value. This rate is often a company's Weighted Average Cost of Capital (WACC), required rate of return, or the hurdle rate that investors expect to earn relative to the risk of the investment.
If you choose to use a high discount rate such as 12% or 15% to discount the future cash, it just means you are willing to pay less today for the future cash. “You can't compensate for risk by using a high discount rate.”
Many shoppers mistakenly equate '30% off' with what we call 'three-fold discount' or simply paying one-third of the price. In reality, when you see that enticing sign, remember this simple math: if an item costs $100 originally and it's marked down by 30%, you'll be spending $70 at checkout.
When we see $20 off instead of $10 off for a $200 item, we think of the number 20, which is higher, so better. Mathematically, amount offs will look bigger than percentage offs when the price is higher than 100. When we perceive a promotion as better value, we're more likely to buy it.
The 2-2-2 rule in sales refers to a customer follow-up strategy: contact a prospect or customer after 2 days, then 2 weeks, and finally 2 months, providing value at each touchpoint to build relationships and secure future business, often focusing on gratitude, feedback, and needs exploration. Another, less common "2-2-2" is for prospecting: find 2 pieces of info in 2 minutes before a call, or a "2-second rule" for powerful pauses on calls.
A discount percentage indicates how much of the original price will be deducted from the total cost. So in this case, if something costs $40 and you get a 50% discount, you're looking at saving half of that amount.
Warren Buffett uses the U.S. 10-year Treasury rate as the discount rate, as described below: "And once you've estimated future cash inflows and outflows, what interest rate do you use to discount that number back to arrive at a present value?
