One of the most challenging aspects of preparing to buy a house is determining your wants versus your needs. It’s easy to become enthralled with all the features you desire, inadvertently losing sight of the essential elements your home must possess. This oversight can potentially lead to unexpected costs or even cause you to walk away from the perfect home without realizing it.
Creating a Checklist for Your Home Purchase
- While the distinction between wants and needs varies from person to person, there are some common considerations and questions to ponder when crafting your want versus need list:
- Proximity to Amenities: How close do you want to be to town, shops, grocery stores, and other essential amenities?
- Extra Space Requirements: Is an additional bedroom for purposes like a home office, gym, craft room, or playroom a non-negotiable requirement? If so, how many bedrooms are essential, and how many are simply desired?
- Condition Preferences: Are you open to a fixer-upper, or do you prefer a move-in-ready home?
- Neighborhood Type: What type of neighborhood suits your lifestyle? Urban, rural, suburban, or city?
- School District Consideration: Is the quality of the school district a deal-breaker for you?
- Home Layout: Do you prefer a single-story or two-story home?
- Home Style: What style of home do you prefer, such as a condo, townhome, or single-family home?
- Garage Requirement: Do you need a garage, and if so, is a detached garage acceptable?
- Maintenance Tolerance: Are you willing to purchase a home with an older roof or other maintenance needs?
- Accessibility Preferences: How important is easy freeway access, proximity to bus stops, or tolerance for airport or train noise?
- Amenities and Features: Do you desire a fireplace, and if so, is gas or wood-burning preferred? What size lot are you looking for, and does the yard need to be fully fenced?
- Appliance Preferences: Must the home come with appliances, and if so, do they need to meet specific criteria, such as color, style, or finish?
- Commute Distance: How far are you willing to commute for work or daily activities?
These are just sample questions to guide your decision-making as you embark on your house-hunting journey. It’s important to note that even seemingly straightforward answers can sway or change in the heat of the moment, potentially leading to buyer’s remorse later on.
To effectively differentiate between your wants and needs, consider documenting your responses or organizing them into two columns: one for wants and one for needs. Visualizing your preferences in this manner can help you stay focused and ultimately select a home that aligns with your essential criteria. Equally crucial is communicating your wants and needs to your real estate agent, ensuring they respect your boundaries and guide you toward homes that match your search preferences, facilitating the realization of your dream home.
