House Hunting Wish List: hints to help you figure it all out.

said on April 15th, 2010 filed under: Information for Buyers

What’s on your wish list?

If you’re hunting for a new home, hopefully you’ve figured out what you can spend. Now you need to focus in on what you want… within your budget, of course. Items to consider:

Location (town, subdivision, zip code)
Colonial or ranch? Hate splits? Love, love, love bungalows!
Walk to Metro, playgrounds, school, dog parks, neighborhood swimming pools, restaurants, etc.
Minimum number of bedrooms
Minimum number of baths
Fixer upper or Move-in condition
New construction or an older home? Older home with addition…
School district(s)
Facing S, W, E, or N?
Must have items: eat-in kitchen, home theatre, garage
Deal killers: galley kitchens, main floor powder room, lack of a basement
Off street parking or driveway
Stairs to front door or level entryway
Fenced yard
Renovated kitchen or baths
Lot size
Busy street, quiet cul-de-sac
Urban, city, woodsy, golf course view…
Size of house. Big and cavernous or a cozy feel?
Fireplace (wood burning or gas?)
Screened porch, deck or patio?
Neighborhood vs. house. Do you want the neighborhood more than the house, or are house amenities more important?
House Rich-Money Poor, or visa versa? Some studies have suggested that if you buy into a community that you can easily afford, you will feel comfortable and blessed with abundance, whereas buying into a community that you can only marginally afford will leave you wanting and feeling deprived.

Before heading out to look for houses, take the time to figure out what you want. And share this with your real estate agent. Trust me, we don’t want to waste your time showing you things that just won’t do. And maybe you don’t know what you want… yet. That’s o.k., too. The ultimate goal is to get you to a place where you can recognize what will work, and what won’t. Chances are this will evolve as you get serious about looking. Just be sure to share your new requirements with your agent, and cast out any old ideas that no longer fit the bill.

Remember, too, that it’s really hard to find a house that has everything. It’s all about balancing your priorities. Determine what is truly important, and what is secondary. If you cannot abide by a house with a galley kitchen, understood. But… if the swimming pool in the backyard more than makes up for the small kitchen, well, it’s good to understand that, too.

You will find that the more specific you are in your search requirements the fewer the homes there will be to show. Ease up on some of the secondary items, and you’ll have a lot more from which to choose.

So, what’s on your list? If you’re looking to buy, or just want some friendly advice about real estate, give me a call.

posted by Marcie Sandalow

This entry was posted on Thursday, April 15th, 2010 at 10:46 am and is filed under Information for Buyers. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.