Property Buying, Step One: Define the Mission
So I was just watching a certain property buying reality show and it reiterated the importance of knowing what you want before venturing into the housing market. This poor girl was young, a bit naive, eager to escape her parents’ roof, etc. We’ve all been there. She clearly hadn’t done much research, mistake numero uno. She met the show host in a charming brownstone neighborhood with towering, character-filled homes and converted multi-unit rentals. The problem? That area of town is about $150,000 more than her budget allowed.
You must know your wants and needs going in. If you want to cut a little off the price, you may have to sacrifice a little on the location. Here are a great list of questions to start from:
Maintenance - To what extent will immediate repairs and maintenance be required? How much do homeowner’s association or building maintenance fees cost?
Size - How many bedrooms and bathrooms will you really need? What square footage will be acceptable? How important is lot size?
Parking - Is parking available? Does it cost extra? Is there a garage or carport available and how large is it?
Nearby development - Are there any upcoming changes to the area’s landscape, like a major shopping complex or the demolition of a major entertainment venue? This could affect traffic and noise patterns, as well as property values for better or worse. Read the news to discover this information.
Location - Is it in a particular area of town that is more affordable, but perhaps less safe or trending toward less safe? What kind of reputation do the schools have? This is of particular importance to families, of course. You may even want to check out the sex offender registry to see if any convicted sex offenders reside near the property in question. Is the area high traffic or high noise? Visit during business/school hours and also just after 5 p.m. to experience the area’s traffic and noise at different times.
If you don’t define your goals from the beginning, you’re done before you even started. The property shopping process will simply be too overwhelming and depressing. Bottom line, you can’t have it all for nothing. You will have to sacrifice somewhere along the line.
November 25th, 2007 at 9:04 pm
[…] eupdate wrote an interesting post today onHere’s a quick excerptSo I was just watching a certain property buying reality show and it reiterated the importance of knowing what you want before venturing into the housing market. This poor girl was young, a bit naive, eager to escape her parents’ roof, … […]
November 25th, 2007 at 9:06 pm
[…] Check it out! While looking through the blogosphere we stumbled on an interesting post today.Here’s a quick excerptSo I was just watching a certain property buying reality show and it reiterated the importance of knowing what you want before venturing into the housing market. This poor girl was young, a bit naive, eager to escape her parents’ roof, … […]