It’s time to search homes! So you are considering a new home purchase. What’s the first step? The answer is obvious, it’s time to search homes. Searching local homes starts right here. There is so planning that can make searching for the right home a lot easier, and we want to explore that here today.
When you do a home search, you need to begin by understanding the type of home that you are looking for. The following are considerations that go into any well thought out home search:
1. Start by getting familiar with the market by doing a more board based search for homes. This means maybe selecting a city you are thinking about buying a home in and maybe a couple general criteria that are sort of must haves for you. So when you hit the search homes button, your results will give you a good feel for the local real estate market in terms of pricing and the size of the inventory currently available for purchase.
2. Search homes by location. Once you’ve gotten a general feel for the area, next make sure you know the area or areas you want to live in. We’ve all heard the phrase “location location location.” Nothing could be more important when starting the search for homes. Home searching by location means you will end up in the type of area to match your specific lifestyle goals. Each real estate market is different, and can vary dramatically even on a neighborhood by neighborhood basis.
3. Search homes that you can afford. There is no point in searching for a house that is outside of your price range. It’s always great to checkout homes of all ranges to get a feel for the current state of the market, but when it’s time to get serious add home search criteria that is truly within your price range. Please note, you may need to go up a little bit in a highly competitive market to find the ideal home.
4. When you start searching homes, consider home features. If you need a single story home, why look at two or three story properties? It makes no sense. If you need a minimum of 3 bedrooms, don’t waste your time looking at 2 bedroom listings. We like to say search homes by location, price, and features. Once you get through the major features, then you can start looking at features that you don’t have to have but would be nice to have. For example, if you would like to have a big yard but It’s not a deal breaker, consider those types of features as tiebreakers rather than as primary home search criteria.
5. Neighborhood home search is something commonly used as well when people look for a home to purchase. Neighborhood features such as community pools and parks may be super important to you. Also, some people may need to be in a gated community in order to feel more secure. Don’t overlook home searches that are based on finding the right neighborhood.
6. Is there a type of life you are looking for? Consider how different living on a lake with a boat dock is versus not. If you’re a golfer, would you like to be able to walk to your own clubhouse right down the street from your home to play 18 holes. Are you a surfer who needs be walking distance to consistent waves? The bottom line is you know what you like. Don’t sell yourself short when searching for a house. You’ll need to weigh all the alternatives in order to find the right home. Although it isn’t the most obvious way to think when conducting a home search, it’s an absolutely essential one if lifestyle considerations are at the top of your list.
How specific do you need your home searches to be? Many of us aren’t sure we like something until we see it. It all depends where are in our quest to find the real estate that makes sense to use. Making home search easy is what we do. Plus, we can help you narrow your search, better understand underlying market conditions, and guide you through the process. Don’t ever hesitate to ask us questions as we know the market. Home search is what we do. You can start in a very broad way, or go straight to exact matches for homes to buy near me. Either way, searching for the right home is a process. Thankfully, today we have home search tools that allow us to narrow our searches while sitting in the comfort of our own homes. Information is king when finding a home. You know what you want and we know how to help you get it. Let’s start your home search today.
