It is important to know your needs vs. wants? There are many
things to consider when buying a home. Do you need a family
home, an investment property, a weekend home, moving up, a
“fixer upper”, upsizing, downsizing, new construction or are you
trying to accommodate an elderly parent? Communicating and
understanding your needs is a critical process of finding you
the perfect home.
Here are some things to consider:
Type of home:
- Single family residence
- Condominium
- Townhome
- Garden home
- New construction
Number of bedrooms with:
- Main level master bedroom
- All bedrooms on upstairs
- Separate guest accommodations
Number of bathrooms with:
- Double or single vanities
- Separate shower and bath or combo
- Dressing area
- Office or nursery attached to bedroom
Location:
- Area amenities
- Close to downtown
- Schools and universities
- Near your work
- Close or away from highways
- Public transit
Additional rooms:
- Great room
- Office/Study
- Game room
- Formal dining
- Media room
- Formal living
- Mud/ laundry room
Kitchen:
- Counter tops
- Appliances
- Breakfast area/bar
- Pantry
Exterior of home:
- Stone
- Stucco
- Brick
- Wood
- Siding
Style of home:
- Traditional
- Ranch
- Mediterranean
- Victorian
- Colonial
Condition of home:
- Well maintained
- Needs minor updating
- Lots of TLC
- Fixer upper
Other features:
- Fireplace
- Swimming pool
- Wood floors
- Patio/Deck
- Sprinkler system
- Fenced yard
- View
- High ceilings
- Screened in porch
- Tennis/Sports court
- Waterfront
Now that you are ready to go look at houses with your agent,
here are some use tips to get the most out of your trips.
- Wear appropriate and comfortable clothing. (Flip-flops and
shorts may not be appropriate for walking a 20 acre ranch.
Thorns, snakes, scorpions, chiggers, and mosquitoes can make for
an unpleasant experience.)
- Bring a notepad and measuring tape. Your agent should have them,
but it never hurts to be prepared.
- Plan to spend about 30 minutes at each house. The right one will
take longer, but you’ll know the wrong one almost instantly.
- Don’t try and see more than 6 to 8 houses in a day. Anything
more than that will be unproductive and all of the details will
start to run together.
- The average buyer sees about 20 to 30 homes before finding “The
One”. Don’t get discouraged if you don’t find it on your first
trip out.
- Give your agent lots of feedback. This will help them narrow
down the list for you and avoid wasting time seeing homes that
won’t work for you.
- Ask lots of questions. If the agent doesn’t know the answer,
they can usually find it out quickly.
- Relax and have fun.