Home Features To Consider For Your Next Home
When you get your dream home, will it be filled with all that you’ve ever loved in a TV show or home magazine? When your wishes finally become a reality, you’ll want to know what’s important for both your lifestyle and you. You’ll lay the foundation for your property search by defining your priorities. Following are several home features to consider for your next home.
1. Cost
To establish realistic expectations, you need to find out just how much home you’re capable of affording. The amount of mortgage you can afford will depend upon a variety of factors like your yearly income, the amount of money you can afford to pay for a down payment, and your month to month debt. To obtain an estimate of your price range for housing, you can use many online mortgage calculation tools.
2. The Type Of Housing You Want
There are many home types but these fit by majority into several broad categories: co-op homes, single-family homes that are detached, condominiums, and townhouses. Every one of these options comes with its own benefits and drawbacks, particularly when it comes to independence and privacy. With single-family homes, residents do not have to share walls and they get their own plots of land. In addition to this independence, however, homeowners get all of the responsibility for property repairs and maintenance. If you opt to invest in a townhome or townhouse, you’ll be the sole owner of the unit, but you’ll have less privacy due to common walls.
There are many types of condos but they adhere to two primary principles: Every condo owner has ownership of the interior of his or her individual condo unit, while maintaining a stake in the building entire, and all condo owners pay fees or dues to a homeowners’ association that handles the general building maintenance and the maintenance of all common areas and features. Co-op owners are shareholders in a corporation that owners the whole building and co-op owners vote on every major decision, pay bills and assess dues.
3. The Neighborhood Or Location
Just as important as the type of structure that you live in is your where you live – and location may actually be even more important. After all, you aren’t just buying a home; you’re also joining a larger community. What goes on outside of your front door will have an impact on the future value of your home and on how your life is lived. So how can you choose the best neighborhood for your needs? Affordability is obviously key, but it’s also about getting the type of lifestyle you deserve and want.
Spend time in a neighborhood to get a gut check. What’s this place like on Friday nights and Sunday mornings? Assess the commute, shop in a local grocery store, spend time talking to people in local coffee shops, and check out a few neighborhood blogs. Decide whether or not you’ll be able to fit into this place.
4. School Quality
If you have children or intend to have them, spend time investigating schools in your area before narrowing down locations. In conjunction with the listings of homes for sale, you can use Zillow to find GreatSchools information for local middle, elementary and high schools. This will give you test scores, info on extracurricular activities, community reviews, population stats for students, and ratings. Even if your family doesn’t include kids, good schools often indicate a strong community, and they could make your home more marketable should you ever choose to sell.
5. The Size And Configuration Of Your Home
Do you want a massive compound or a cozy nest? Cost has to be balanced – and each bathroom and bedroom will add to the price of a home – along with convenience. Listings of homes for sale will include the per-square-foot cost so that housing costs can be easily compared.
Understanding which factors are negotiable for your household is also important:
– Sufficient green for growing a few tomatoes or an immense yard
– Street parking, a carport or a garage
– Having your own pool or being in close proximity to a community pool
– An urban village or a unit with an ocean view
– Comfortable nooks and crannies, or a luxurious great room
– A basement rec room or an in-law unit
If you absolutely have to have a big yard or a three-car garage, think about which features you’re willing to trade. It could be that your younger kids are able to share a room, or you might be able to forgo having a breakfast nook. Understanding which features you need versus the features you want will help both you and your agent in the search for a home that fits.
For help finding your next home, please feel free to contact us at info@onestophomebuyersLLC.com.