What You NEED to Look for in a Home

For some, starting the home search process is their favorite part if they are regular HGTV watchers. For others, it comes second to actually owning their new home. It might rank differently on your list, but for most home buyers this part of the home buying process is exciting after all the conversations about loans, pre-approval, and savings.

When the time comes to start looking for homes a quality real estate agent will take the time to get to know your WANTS as well as your NEEDS.

You might be wondering...aren’t those the same?

WANTS AND NEEDS

They might not be. Your “needs” are determined by your absolute necessities. These will be different for every person buying a home. A want is a feature of the home or property that would be enjoyable to have, but would not be a deal-breaker if it didn’t. Something that determines the “wants” for one home buyer may be a “need” for another home buyer. “Wants” and “needs” can cover a variety of common topics like the size of the home, type of outdoor space, location relative to town, attached vs. detached garage, containing an additional detached unit, or rental potential.

Your “wants” and “needs” will be entirely unique to your situation, so don’t be afraid to get specific with your real estate agent. However, be open to change as you may find that your market does not support all of the qualities you want in one specific home. You may need to pair down your list in order to find a home right now that fits most of what you are looking for.

ONLINE HOME SEARCHING

After you have shared what you hope to have in your future home you can start the search process! Real estate agents have access to a Multiple Listing Service that includes each home on the market with provided agent-only details. Your agent will create a search category containing your “wants” and “needs”. This search sheet will pull each home on the market within your criteria and those that are just hitting the market as they pop up. This gives your agent in-the-moment updates to make sure you are seeing the homes you want as soon as possible.

Thankfully with technological advancements, homebuyers can keep up with the housing inventory through websites/apps like Zillow, Redfin, Realtor.com, or Trulia. It’s common for homebuyers to trade in their social media habits for late-night home searches!

When looking online you and your agent will want to look at the finer details of the home listing. Make sure to check out details like the year it was built, what the property taxes are, and what the listing history of the home is. Homes that have gone pending and placed back on the market multiple times often have underlying issues that are not apparent until the home is under contract. These may be homes you want to stay away from.

You may want to do further research on homes you are very interested in. Learning about the zoning for that home, homeowner association regulations, and even future development plans in the surrounding area can give you an idea of how they may impact your homeownership.

TIME TO TOUR

Once you and your agent find homes that fit your “wants” and “needs”, your agent will compile a list and schedule showings at each home. It's important to see as many homes as possible to find what fits you, while also making sure there aren't so many showings that you cannot remember the details of the homes you saw. Touring around three to four homes in one day seems to be the best fit for most home buyers. Usually home tours last around 30 minutes to an hour depending on your interest in the home.

There is unspoken etiquette when it comes to entering into a seller’s home to view. Some sellers may require booties, masks or hand sanitizer when entering to avoid mud, dirt, and germ being tracked into their home. Make sure to abide by their requests as you not only want to be a kind person, but you also want to be in good rapport when placing an offer on the home. Although it is important to take a look in-depth at the home if you can– which we will talk about more in a minute– it’s respectful to leave anything in the home the way you found it. After your tour, your real estate agent will make sure to turn off the lights and lock all the doors before leaving.

KEEP AN EYE OUT

When you enter the home your imagination will often kick into overdrive. Imagining lovely family dinners, playing in the yard, or working in the office may fill your mind as you walk through each room. The opposite may also happen where you cannot imagine yourself there at all if the home is dirty or disorganized.

Try not to get hung up on the superficial aspects of the home. Dirt and disorganization can be remedied with cleaning and organizing the home the way you want. A home that is beautifully staged with neutral tones may make it easier for you to imagine your life there, but it doesn’t always mean it is the best fit. If the home is in sound working order, has all your needs, and hopefully some of your wants too, it may be a good fit even if it’s hard to get past the clutter.

Important things to keep an eye out for are some of the bigger issues that can crop up during homeownership. 

Notice the smell of the home when you walk in. Does it have a musty, wet smell? It could also be the opposite and there are lots of artificial smells being pumped throughout the home. Both could be signs of water damage, mold, pet urine, or even smells coming from the surrounding neighborhood.

Check for water damage in all rooms by paying attention to squishy floors, spotted walls or ceilings, or even cracked caulking in windows/sinks that could mean water damage is lurking below the surface. If you notice lots of issues with the window frames inside or outside the home it could mean that there isn’t proper drainage happening off the roof or that adequate flashing wasn’t added to protect the windows. This could lead to internal damage to the home. Sometimes water damage was repaired in the main rooms, but not in closets. Check closet ceilings for hidden water damage.

Draining issues could also crop up in the basement or yards due to improper draining after heavy rainfall. Check the foundation to see how the water flows off the property and, if you can, take a look into the crawl space or basement to see if there is any water damage.

The foundation can also show high-cost issues like large cracks. These could mean that the foundation is settling in a way that may require extensive repair. If no cracks are visible you can also tell by checking the slant of the floor in rooms or even in the door frames. If multiple doors are not properly aligning with the door frame it is likely a foundation issue.

Although not always the case, sometimes you can tell that maintenance has been deferred by the smaller issues adding up during a home tour. Leaky faucets, loose door handles, exposed wires, broken light fixtures...If you find lots of small issues they could mean the home was not properly cared for. If many small issues aren’t taken care of, it’s likely the big issues were not taken care of either.

PATIENCE IS KEY

The home search process can take one day (we’ve seen it multiple times!), sixth months, or even a year depending on housing inventory, the type of market you are buying in, and how flexible you are with your home choice. It’s okay if it takes you longer than your relative or friend to find a home. You want to make sure you find the right fit for you.

Throughout the process, it's important to keep open communication with your real estate agent. A helpful agent wants you to ask questions so that you can be informed throughout the whole process.

Print out this blog post to have beside you during house searching as well as any of our other home-buying educational resources so that you can approach home buying with confidence.

Happy house hunting!