First Time Home Buyer Guide - Step #3 - But I WANT a Pool!
Mar 10th, 2008 by Jody McLeod
You may want a pool, but do you really NEED it? Today I am continuing the First Time Home Buyer Guide series. Topic #3: Deciding Your Needs and Wants in a Home
As mentioned in previous posts, if you have already had the pleasure of purchasing a home, this guide may not be for you. However, home-buying newbies out there need all of the help they can get in understanding a confusing, and sometimes overwhelming, process. Read on, grasshopper…
Making a List
Sitting down and creating a needs and wants list can really help clarify the right home for you. Not only does it make you take a moment to think about your lifestyle and NEEDS, it also helps prevent you from buying above your means, making an emotional buy or settling for something that’s really doesn’t fit the bill.
As you are looking at available properties, determine what it is you actually must have in a home. Rarely does the perfect home exist, but many buyers use the 80/10/10 rule: the house is 80 percent perfect, has 10 percent that you can live with and 10 percent you can change.
Some examples of needs:
- Enough square footage to be comfortable
- Enough bedrooms and baths for the family
- Garage or basement
- Size of lot to accommodate kids play area
- Handicapped accessible
- Single floor livng for health reasons
Examples of wants:
- Carpet color, wall color, exterior color, roof color, etc.
- Pool or Jacuzzi (unless for medical reasons)
- Bay windows
- Wrought iron lighting fixtures
- Skylights
- A pretty view
To help you with your list-making, here are a couple of ready-made forms. One is from FreddieMac and the other is from USAA Educational Foundation. Have fun making your lists and watch for the next topic in the series: Deciding Whether or Not You Need a Realtor
Relaxing by the Pool photo by Twid
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