How to Pick the Right Property for Your Needs

Thinking about the perfect kind of home can be a fun and engaging part of the home buying process. It is an excellent time to talk to others about what worked for them and what they wish they had done differently. However, it's vital to keep in mind that a buyer's priorities are unique. By putting needs first and being willing to compromise on things that aren't as important, buyers have a better chance of selecting a home that will be satisfying for the long haul so they can reap the benefits of homeownership for Millennials and get ahead of peers using real estate.

Picking the Right Home

Get five people into one room and tell them to come up with everything they need for a home, and there will be five different answers. Buyers who have to negotiate with a spouse, partner or co-buyer often find that there is some conflict in deciding what they need most in a home. Once you've decided you're ready to buy a home, negotiating before starting to look at houses helps put needs first and avoids arguments in front of a real estate agent.

Ensuring Room to Grow

Buying a home that's perfect for right now and for a few years into the future is a bit of a tightrope walk. On the one hand, having space for everything is important. On the other hand, paying a boatload to buy a house that will be perfect for the three kids that don't yet exist may not be practical. Even if buyers are planning to move up to a larger home in 3–5 years, that might not happen. Buying a home with enough bedrooms and bathrooms to make living there feasible for several years is the best way to ensure buyers can stay secure should the housing market be unfavorable for them.

Ideal Amenities

People say a lot about the number of bedrooms and bathrooms, but the rest of the space should also be useful. An open floor plan is perfect for the person who wants a place with a lot of room to move. A kitchen the size of an orange crate isn't going to work well for someone who spends all their free time cooking and baking. The practicality of certain add-ons requires some debate. A big backyard has a lot of potential for gardening and entertaining, but it can also be time-consuming and expensive to maintain.

Reasonable Resale Value

The future resale value of a home needs to be a big part of the decision as well. The average homeowner lives in a home for about 13 years. That's enough time to ride out some dips in home values, but anyone who wants to sell sooner should buy something with good potential. This may take a little research and some input from a real estate agent familiar with the history of the market in the area. However, you should also make the common mistake of applying for a mortgage on a home that's too expensive for you, as it can cause difficulty in getting a mortgage and negatively impact your debt-to-income ratio.

Choosing the Right Neighborhood

Finding the best place to live concerns more than just the home itself. The best property on the planet may get old quickly if the commute to work takes an hour one way. Considering the neighborhood carefully sorts out the ideal choices from the options that are less practical for the long-term.

Inside the Neighborhood

Buying a home gives people their one best chance to be in an environment that works ideally for them. Neighbors' attitudes toward their own homes, and future resale values of the homes on the street, are only one part of the equation. Buyers who don't have kids at present but want to start a family should check out the playgrounds in the neighborhood as well as the local schools. Subdivisions with a lot of community activities may be perfect for people who like to get involved and make new friends.

Comparing Outside Factors

Situating the neighborhood in the broader area assists buyers in narrowing down the features they need the most. Location is important, not just for resale value but for overall contentment with the property. Access to utilities, like natural gas or fast Internet services, varies from one region to the next. Proximity to work, entertainment, and shopping make it easier for homeowners to get elsewhere with less hassle. People who work a traditional schedule should also think about the kind of traffic they'll face in and around the neighborhood.

Taking weeks or even a month to debate all these factors and put everything in order is the best way to target a home search. Organizing by needs and wants makes it easy to limit the possible homes to those that will meet all major needs both present and in the near future. Reach out to a real estate agent who can help you with the process and get you into the right home for you.