Ten tips to help you get the most out of your house hunting experience

House hunting can be a lot of fun, but its also a lot of work.  With a good plan and road map the process should go very smoothly.  Below is a list of 10 steps to aid you in your search.  Good Luck!

1. Be Realistic

Get out a piece of paper and start writing down the things you need in a home versus the things you want.  This checklist will help you remember which house had what, especially when looking at many properties.

2. Be Proactive

Your real estate agent will be a huge help with the house hunting process. But don’t rely solely on your agent. Go out there and do some hunting yourself.

3. Get Connected

The Internet can reduce your house hunting time by 50 percent or more. By previewing homes and researching neighborhoods online, you can weed out the ones you don’t want to visit. This will save you time, energy and gas money.

4. Ask Questions

When visiting a home, don’t be shy about asking the sellers (or their agent) plenty of questions. Be friendly about it, but be thorough.

5. Check the ‘Comps’

Always compare the asking price of a home to recent sales in the area. Your agent should be expert at providing such “comps” to help you validate (or invalidate) the seller’s asking price.

6. Visit During Rush Hour

That peaceful property you visited at 10:00 in the morning might be totally different at 5:30 in the evening. By visiting a home during rush hour, you’re evaluating two things at once. First, you’ll find out if traffic snarls make it hard to enter or exit the neighborhood. Secondly, you’ll be able to judge the noise factor at its noisiest time of day.

7. Take a Test Drive

Test out the morning commute to your work. It might seem silly to do a rush hour commute from a home you’re only considering, but think about how much time you’ll spend commuting day after day. It’s a big quality-of-life issue, so it deserves some consideration.

8. Talk to the Town

Talk to the town, city or county to find out what their plans are for the area around the home. Will that beautiful forest across the street be a shopping center or a highway in two years? You won’t know unless you do the research. Don’t expect the sellers to volunteer such information, because it’s not in their interest to deliver bad news about the neighborhood.

9. Take Pictures

Digital cameras are ideal for house hunting. Taking pictures of each home will help you remember the countless details of the multiple homes you will visit.

10. Get a Second Opinion

When visiting a home that could potentially become yours, it’s easy to get wrapped up in the emotion of it all. Sometimes, emotion has a way of clouding our better judgment. A great way to counter this is to bring a friend or family member along on house hunting trips. In addition to providing company, a “disinterested witness” can offer an objective point of view. This is crucial when making such a large purchase.

If you are thinking of buying or selling a home in Wellesley, Weston, Natick or surrounding towns please give me a call.

Cell:  508-494-0811

email:  mmccaffrey@PinnacleHouses.com

 
This article is adapted from Brandon Cornett’s article, Editor of Home Buying Institute, at www.homebuyinginstitute.com

 

 

Contributed by Maureen McCaffrey mmccaffrey@pinnaclehouses.com Cell Phone: (508) 494-0811 | Office Phone: 781-237-5000 http://www.maureenmccaffrey.com

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