Successful house hunting requires gut instinct and a go-to checklist
Searching for a new home is one of the most exciting and stressful homeowner tasks. While it’s easy to daydream of wide-plank hardwood floors and a backyard oasis, it’s more difficult to find a home within your price and neighborhood range that checks all of your must-have boxes.
Prepare for the house-hunting process by following these tips to help find your dream home.
The reality of buying a new home is that your finances will drive your house hunt. While it’s not as fun as planning a wine tasting at your new place, you should take the time to evaluate your financial situation to determine how much house you can afford.
Before you start your house search, take a good look at your budget and work with a mortgage lender to harness all of your buying power. You can even apply for a mortgage preapproval to make it easier to submit future offers. Once you’ve found your ideal price range, it's time to seriously scroll for your dream house.
Finding a real estate agent you can trust to find your dream home is an essential step of the house-hunting process. Start by asking any friend, family member, or neighbor you trust for recommendations for real estate agents near you, and they’ll likely gush about their experience.
You can also search online to find highly rated local agents, especially people who have closed on homes in your desired neighborhood or area. Once you narrow down your agent options, talk openly with them about your house wishlist and must-have features. You can take the emotion out of the home sale, but an emotional connection with an agent who “gets you” makes all the difference.
It's OK to fall down a rabbit hole of real estate photos for a while, especially to get a sense of the available types of homes in your area. But eventually, you’ll have to define what features and amenities you need. Start by ranking your priorities to help you narrow the search.
Consider these points when creating your priority list:
Your budget
Location
Number of bedrooms and bathrooms
Commute to work
Access to local schools
Local amenities like shopping, restaurants, and green space
After picking a few standout neighborhoods, act like a local and dig into the details of what it’s like to live there. Read the local news online and join neighborhood social media groups. After you’ve made some friendly connections, you’ll start to learn the small but important details about the community, including the neighborhood pool schedule, pending school board decisions, and construction zones.
Drive or walk through your potential new neighborhood and explore the local scene. You’ll get an up-close view of the homes and the overall condition of the neighborhood. Stop and chat with a friendly neighbor and mention you’re looking to buy a house nearby. Your new neighbor might have the scoop on a hidden gem or steer you away from an issue-prone house.
Picture this: Your trusted agent calls and says a house that checks all of your boxes has become available, and you have a scheduled showing. Once you arrive, you should lean on your intuition and then file away the details you smell, see, hear, and feel.
It’s easy to get swept away during a house showing and forget to ask about essential details. To avoid this situation, use your senses during the tour and take note of the following:
Odors: Food, pets, smoke, mold, and mildew
Water damage: Ceilings, walls, and floors
HVAC: Leaks, disrepair, filter size, previous maintenance
Plumbing: Running toilets, shower water pressure, leaking pipes
Electrical: Outdated fuse box, wiring
Bedrooms: Sizes, overhead lighting, ceiling fans
Bathrooms: Fixtures, number of bathtubs and sinks
Kitchen: Appliances’ age and condition, cabinet and countertop materials
Living spaces: Carpeting, hardwood condition, tile condition
Roof: History of damage, missing shingles, moss patches
Siding and paint: Signs of cracking, age, missing pieces
Deck, patio, porch: Damaged materials, refinish options
Windows and doors: Energy efficiency, age, security
Fencing: Total or partial yard coverage, previous repairs
Landscaping: Large trees, overgrowth, sprinkler system
Noise: Traffic, train tracks, airplane routes, construction
Remember, you’ll hire a professional home inspector before the sale goes through. They’ll find the major and minor problems and let you know how much it costs to fix them, so you don’t have to worry about catching every issue during each showing. So relax and envision yourself living in each potential room.
Let's be honest: After viewing dozens of homes, you’ll likely forget some important details, so you’ll need an easy organization plan. Before your first showing, create a document or spreadsheet to keep track of each house’s features, amenities, and issues.
To help remember your top contenders, create a funny nickname to spark your memory, like, “Big Red Barn House” or “Needs a Lot of Love on Main.” Add pictures of home details you’ll forget (or aren’t in the professional photos), like how many stools fit under the kitchen island or if the windows are updated. Then, go the extra mile and video your top contenders. These copious notes will help you make an informed final decision.
