What home should you buy?
How do you know what house you should buy? What area should you buy in, does it matter? When you are spending (most likely) the MOST money you have ever spent …how do you know if you are making the right choice? Do you get paralyzed with insecurity? Do you second guess yourself? If you were to bring a friend, or your mom by the home you were about to buy…and they HATED it…would you change your mind? Does it matter? What does it mean if you answer yes? You shouldn’t buy a house?
I can’t answer questions for you about all of these things. What I can do, possibly, is help you figure out the answers for yourself. The reality is, you know probably deep down, if a home isn’t right for you. If it is too far from where you currently live and you won’t only be adding your commute time, you’ll be doubling it… that might be further out than you want. If you are pushing your budget and promising to give up your daily Starbucks, you might be buying too much house.
Renting is proven to be more expensive than buying. The mortgage you would pay if you bought a house, vs the monthly rent you would pay if you are renting it, is usually smaller…plus it is your house. Your equity you would be building, your mortgage your payments are reducing, your mortgage interest write off you are taking on your taxes. You can decide the paint color, and what upgrades are important. You can have a dog, no matter how big or what breed (as long as HOA allows) and you can have a cat. You know that you want to be a home owner, you want to experience this American dream.
Don’t let others influence your decision
The most important thing you can do when buying a house is buy what you know is right. Call it intuition, call it your gut feeling, call it whatever you want…but usually you know. Does this mean you don’t need to do your research? No…you should absolutely do your own research, and talk to your mom, your friend, and your agent about your concerns. Usually these people want the best for you….they don’t want you buying a home that you will regret quickly. Sometimes your mom will be thinking of herself, and not want you too far away, even if the house is perfect. Maybe your friend would prefer you buy the house you don’t love in her neighborhood. So you need to evaluate these things and decide for yourself, and your family. If you have kids, are you buying in the best school district? Would you rather have a smaller house, but spend less time on your commute? Would you rather have a yard you can plant a garden in than a courtyard house with a fabulous community pool? Only YOU can answer these things.
Regrets
I think of the homes I have bought over the years, and some were perfect, and others…I dismissed what I knew was wrong. What have I regretted? Floor plan…my first house had a tiny family room, it never worked. Location…my second house was too far out from my work, my friends…and too close to my in laws. My third house was perfect. It was gross when we bought it, but we remodeled, and it was perfect. And my 4th house? Too big, too expensive….and I gave up my perfect house for it…and brought so much stress into my life. When I think about the mistakes I made…I always knew that I was making them. I should have not compromised, or been lured by things that I wasn’t looking for and didn’t need.
If you know that you want to move, take some time to evaluate what is important to you, and your family. What is comfortable to spend for your budget? How much time do you want to spend commuting? Will you regret being too close, or too far from family? What if the floor plan isn’t what you were looking for…will you be able to make it work? Talk it through with your agent…chances are she has made some mistakes in her own purchases, and if not, she has certainly seen people she has worked with make mistakes, and call her to move again within a year or two. The advice we can share with you will be gathered from situations like yours, and it might help you make a choice that will make you happier. Don’t let your friends, or people you admire, influence you too much if you know in your gut the choices they want you to make are not the right ones for you and your family.
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