No matter where you choose to look at homes for sale, you will have your work cut out for you; which listings have something to offer and could be your future home? When you ask these questions, you can get a sense of that pretty quickly.
How Close Is the Home to Our Maximum Mortgage?
Most home prices aren't set in stone. There is a chance that you can bring your favorite homes for sale down in price. But do be aware of going over your mortgage approval limit or even getting close to it. Closing costs can eat up a few percent of the home's value, so you have to budget for those. You also might want to leave some room in your budget for improvements on whichever home you do choose.
Is it Well-Maintained?
The signs of maintenance issues can be apparent from the very first viewing. Although it's no substitute for getting a home inspection on your own terms, a visual inspection of the property will give you a good idea of what the foundation looks like and whether the property is aged. Plan for extra maintenance costs if you choose a property that's many decades old and hasn't been through a renovation.
Will it Suit Our Needs for at Least the Next Ten Years?
You might love a home feature now, but it will start to take up too much space or be dangerous when you start having kids in a few years. Envision yourself in each home in ten years; is it a good fit? If not, you might want to save yourself the effort of going to see it, falling in love, and having to move into a bigger place a couple of years down the road.
What Are the Neighbors Like?
The neighborhood will come to play a role in your life and your social climate, but too many people neglect to get to know this part of the home deal when they are excited about the interiors or the amount of space they can get. Perhaps your real estate agent or your seller can introduce you to some of the neighbors so that you can get a picture of the type of people you may be interacting with on a daily basis.
Before you allow yourself to get excited about a property, make sure you have some information on all of these criteria; finding the right homes for sale depend on it.
