How to Find the Perfect Home

You can find the perfect home if you know what to look for in a potential house you want to buy. Lucky for you, we know some key things to look for! We want to help you find a home to move into quickly. While it can take months to find the perfect one for you, it takes even less time to find the ones that aren’t a good fit. These tips will hopefully cut that search time down.

What is Your Definition of a Perfect Home?

Your definition of the perfect home will differ from our definition of a perfect home. You need to know what makes “your” home perfect. Sitting down and listing all the things you want your new home to have, all things you don’t want it to have, and all the things you can compromise on can help you get a more concrete idea of what you’re looking for. This helps save you time as you can cross off potential homes from your list whenever you see something about it that you are unwilling to compromise on.

For example, if you know you need at least three bathrooms for your family, then seeing a home with only two means that house is a no-go. Even if everything else is perfect, just remember what you were willing to compromise on and what you weren’t. The last thing you want to do is to waste time on a home you’re already unhappy about. With that one known flaw, it’s already not the perfect home for you.

What is Your Budget?

It is always helpful to have a price range that you are comfortable spending on a home. While normally we would say not to look at homes past the maximum price you were willing to spend, it’s a great idea to look at them anyway to get a feel for what else is on the market. It’s also equally important to remember that you can always make a lower offer on the house. Just be careful not to go too low with your offer as you could upset the buyer and lose the sale.

With that being said, it’s equally important not to exceed the budget you set for yourself. It’s one thing to make an offer that is lower, but if the owner makes a counter offer that is beyond what you were willing to spend, even on the home that seemed perfect in every other way, it is important to walk away. Walking away is better than putting yourself too far in debt. 

We also recommend getting pre-approved for a loan before looking for your perfect home. It’ll save you loads of trouble, as you’ll know which homes to look at and which ones to avoid, based on price.

Should You Go Big or Keep it Small?

We understand the dream of living in a big home, but if you think about it, bigger may or may not be what you need. Keep in mind the list you made on what you needed, wanted, and could compromise on. Bigger homes often take more work to clean and can cost more when the roof or flooring needs replaced. As long as you know what you want and what you need, you’ll know whether you should be looking at bigger homes or smaller ones.

Have You Considered Remodeling?

Did you know you can get a home improvement loan? You can buy a home that is less than perfect and then remodel it later. You can add new wood floors, add an extra room, repaint it, upgrade the kitchen, and more. You can save up money and get a loan to reduce the burden of remodeling.

This option is best if you keep your budget in mind and purchase a house for far less than what you had intended. Then, the money you were already willing to put towards buying a dream home can be used to turn the cheaper home into exactly what you wanted. This option requires more work, but if that’s something you want, then go for it!

Have You Thought About the Location?

It’s important to drive around a prospect home to observe the different facilities located near it. You can check out the quality of the pool or tennis court or look into the school district, if you have kids or plan to have kids in the future. Having numerous facilities near the home also increases its resale value. If you’re serious about purchasing the house, it’s a great idea to drive from the house to work to see how traffic is and to have a feel for the route.

Have Researched the Neighborhood?

Very few want to live next to unfriendly or loud neighbors. Ask around to see if your potential neighbors feel the neighborhood is safe. They’re also a great source for letting you know if they like the Home Owners Association (if the neighborhood has one). Before buying, it’s also a good idea to research the values of the properties in the area to get a feel for if the house’s value will increase with time or decrease.

Take the time to answer these questions before you search for your perfect home. If you need to get pre-approved or need a loan to remodel your home in the future, we’re a call away.