Buying a Home: 5 Points to Consider

Buying a home is one of the most important steps in your life. Why? For most people, buying a home means purchasing their most expensive asset. In other words, it must be handled with care if you aim to protect, and capitalize on, your investment. Here are a few tips to help you reduce the stress that comes with the home-buying experience and have some peace of mind with this really important decision.

Know why you are buying

This may sound silly but the point being made here is to think about the reason for your purchase so that you buy the right home. If you need to find a home in a new location in a short period of time your motivation will be different than if you are not pressed for time. Time is often connected to price, especially when other people are interested in buying the same home. If you must buy and you find the perfect home, you may end up paying more for your new home than if you have all the time in the world and you are not fixed on buying a specific home.

New or resale

Before looking for a new home think about whether or not you will be satisfied with buying a home that meets most of your needs and wants. If not, you will likely have to build new. However, are you prepared to pay a premium to do so, if building a new home is more expensive than buying a similar used home?

What type of home

Every home offers some very important features inside and out. When you have a long needs and wants list, be prepared to spend more. If you do and you buy luxury real estate it is important to know the market to make sure that you do not pay too much and whether or not you will be able to resell the home easily down the road.

Location, location, and location

While some people may believe that this saying is used too often in real estate it is always an important consideration. Ask yourself a few questions. Do you need to be close to a school? Do you need to be closed to shopping? Do you need to be close to a hospital? Do you want a view of something? Are you bothered living too close to neighbours? Does the noise of a busy street bother you? In addition to addressing your wants and needs, location can also be a very important issue when it comes to resale.

Know the full cost of buying

While buying a home can be very expensive, it is important to know all of the associated costs so that you do not go over your budget. Are there costs associated with the transfer of the property? Do any taxes apply to the purchase?   How much are the legal fees and inspection costs?

By sitting down to think about these and other questions you will be better informed and prepared to buy your next home so that you can feel good about your decision.