Searching for the best house can be overwhelming, especially without guidance. The multiple options available in the market don’t make it easier to settle for one either. Failure to choose wisely could leave you with an unsatisfactory house or waste your resources. Without guidance, you spend lots of time jumping from one possibility to another, finding fault in almost all of them.
Seeking a house can be simple, primarily when using a house hunting checklist. Crafting a detailed one will highlight the essential components you seek in a home, helping you choose faster. Here’s a list of factors to consider during your search.
1. Location
What’s the first thing that comes to mind when considering your home’s location? Is it its proximity to amenities? Do you wish to find one that has a school nearby for your children? Is your dream house close to where you work? Other factors relating to location, such as the neighborhood’s easy access to facilities like the gym or communal pool, also determine whether a house meets your needs.
The proximity to reliable water sources and similar services also guides your search for the ideal house. Closeness to factories or railway lines is noisy and may disrupt your night’s sleep long after you’ve moved into a new home. Including location in your checklist for house hunting prevents you from making rushed decisions and settling for a house that’ll later cause you regrets when you can’t easily access your most needed facilities.
2. Your Budget
Purchasing or renting a house comes with different price tags. Factors such as location, building materials, and size, among others, have some houses way above your budget while others are within reach. Some houses are pricier than others due to their location. Some will surpass your budget due to the closeness to facilities you have no use for. For example, a house you like may be expensive due to its proximity to a shopping center.
This will only appeal to you should you need constant shopping. The same applies to closeness to schools, which only matters if you have school-going children. Before you begin your hunt, it’s essential to add a quote to your checklist for house hunting. This will cut short your search by only taking you to prospects within your budget. Note that your house budget involves more than rent or buying price. Extra charges, such as money for necessary repairs, also fall in your budget in some places. It’s also essential to check beforehand if you can pay for your chosen house via a mortgage or whether it limits you to cash payments. Some house owners allow payment in installments, while others demand upfront payments, which affect your budget.
3. Available Amenities
Are you a lawn enthusiast or prefer concrete slab patios for your compound? Responding to a question as easy as this may help you significantly compile the amenities you want. Other than shelter, amenities define vital factors in your search for a house. Functioning heating is a thing to look for if your house is in a cold-prone area. Areas with varying climatic situations require modern, working air conditioning.
Adding such to your checklist for house hunting acts as a reminder to research local ac companies and find out what insulation work for specific areas. Look for fixtures like stable staircases, especially if you have kids or older adults in your family. Overlooking such amenities could land you a house that’ll later stress your family out.
4. Functionality
Often, people have rushed to settle for a house that looks good without checking out whether it serves their purpose. If you make such a mistake, you risk ending up with a house that leaks or, worse, whose drainage systems must be fixed. Consider functionality in your checklist for house hunting.
This will prompt you to check for cracks, peeling paint, and mold on walls, among other signs of a broken system. If you’re unsure, walk with the best drain cleaning plumber, and they’ll help look out for such issues. You can also ask the house owner how often they have needed septic pumping service and determine if this fits within your expectations.
5. Size And Available Storage
One mistake you can make is to move to a house that’ll force you to dispose of some personal stuff for lack of space. As daft as this may sound, it’s a common mistake people make when moving into new premises. However good a house looks, it’ll frustrate you if it gets crowded with your belongings when you move in. Things like the number of rooms you need should feature in your checklist for house hunting.
Have your family needs in mind, such as the number of people needing a room or the size of kitchen you need to serve your family comfortably. Consider the space needed if you’re a pet keeper or an indoor plants lover. It won’t help if you move into a house that won’t accommodate your indoor palm tree or delicate flower pots. The availability of storage cabinets and drawers also contributes to space in your intended house. Where you have enough rooms but less storage space, find out if they allow for an additional cabinet install and at what cost.
6. Energy Efficiency
Owing to cries to stop over-reliance on fossil fuels due to climate change, homes require an energy efficiency plan to remain habitable even as weather patterns change. For example, failure to get a well-insulated home will leave you using extra energy to keep your house warm when needed. To avoid ending up in such a counterproductive situation, look for houses with modern, updated foam insulation installation. An energy audit, guided by your checklist for house hunting, will help reveal weaknesses in a home’s attic, floors, and walls, showing where more insulation is required.
7. Roofing and Siding
Looking good on the outside is convincing enough for most people to move into a house. One can’t disagree with them, knowing very well the facade of a house can determine its value. However, house seekers need to check the aesthetic value of a house’s outside walls, leaving out important details such as the quality of siding and roofing.
Roofing and sidings go a long way in protecting your house’s interior from extreme weather elements. They also prevent heat loss, saving you energy. Consider them in your checklist for house hunting to avoid settling for a good-looking but energy-wasting house. To be sure, work with a local siding contractor who can tell what elements your house needs to withstand and the best siding against them.
8. Security
Some neighborhoods are safe, while others record crime almost every other day. Without considering your family’s security, you might end up rushing into a house whose neighborhood is known for crimes such as robbery and break-ins. Putting your family at such risk is costly and might consume your resources trying to manage burglary situations.
You don’t have to go through this; a thorough background check can help you know how to secure a neighborhood. In your checklist for house hunting, add considerations such as the availability of surveillance cameras and secure gates before you settle for a house. Further, on security, find out if your intended property has a guard around the clock and the processes one undergoes before being let into the property. Ensure that doors, windows, and other entry points are made of solid, durable material.
9. The House’s Condition
The last thing you want to do in a newly acquired house is to begin doing repairs. Yet, most new homeowners mindlessly move into houses with serious repair needs. From a need to repaint to unclogging blocked sinks, settling for a house in lousy condition will unnecessarily siphon your finances. You can prevent this by tagging the house’s condition in your checklist for house hunting. This will help you check out things you would have missed, such as stained ceiling boards, a persistent foul odor, or missing floorboards.
Failure to check a house’s condition could also pose a future problem regarding ease of cleaning. Houses with complicated surfaces run your cleaning budget dry instead of those that require moderate cleaning services such as dry cleaning. For this, you need an actual visit to the house and give it a thorough tour. Checking these pointers via pictures and videos deny you a proper evaluation chance, later demanding more extensive repairs and renovations.
10. Insurance Options
Owning or renting a house comes with the need for insurance to foolproof the future against the unseen. Consider the availability of reliable insurance service providers to cover the house you settle for. Luckily, insurance is a prominent service, and finding ideal home insurance is less challenging. Still, it’s crucial to note that certain home features can affect insurance prices and availability.
Proximity to a hydrant and fire extinguishing services lower insurance fees, while increased distance increases the fees. Older homes can be costly to insure as they have ornate features like plaster walls, ceiling molding, and wooden floors, which are costly to replace. Standard home insurance policies don’t cover significant occurrences such as flooding, so settling for a house in a flood-prone area will require more insurance.
11. Accessibility To Health Facilities
One can’t prevent or foretell accidents and emergencies. However, knowing you’re better prepared should you have to deal with one is a source of peace of mind. People living near health facilities are less stressed about what would happen should their family members fall ill. Proximity to a health facility means you can easily access healthcare even at the oddest hour should the need arise.
This is why you should include easy access to a medical professional in your checklist for house hunting. A house just about 10 minutes away from a reliable healthcare facility might cost you extra, but its assurance is that you can access treatment easily. Good infrastructure, such as the road leading there, is an added advantage should you rush a family member at night.
12. How To Choose Based On These Factors
Crafting your checklist for house hunting gets you halfway there. You still need to go out and check all the requirements against actual houses. Moving from one house to another is complex and requires much time.
You do not have to sweat it; house hunting is not a unique undertaking. There’s always someone who can point you in the correct direction. You can find a potential house easily by;
Asking Friends and Colleagues: Having a checklist makes it easy to describe the house you’re looking for. In it, find your most vital points and use them to seek guidance. If, for example, you prefer a house that allows your children to access school easily, mention it to anyone who can help. You’ll discover that people have sought houses before you and will know places with the amenities you seek.
Checking Online: The internet is a one-stop shop for almost everything. You can use it to filter suitable houses in your preferred locality. Here, you can check as many available houses as possible against your checklist for house hunting. While images and videos can be misleading, a quick search via the web reduces the time you would have spent moving from one house to another.
Talking to Experts: You’d be surprised by the knowledge experts in different fields have on house hunting. Roofing contractors understand what roofing material can withstand elements and which can’t. Local plumbers know the estates with the best drainage system and those that require constant fixing. Talk to such experts to save yourself from making a regrettable choice. They’ll cut your search time by telling you which houses to avoid.
Taking a Tour: Nothing beats first-hand experience, even in house hunting. After you’ve spoken to different people and narrowed your search, you can now arrange to visit the few premises with promise. This will allow you to confirm further that your options fit or come close to fitting your checklist. For efficiency, arrange early with the house owners to manage visits at different times of the day.
House hunting is daunting when you don’t know where to start. Luckily, having a checklist reduces the hustle and minimizes the number of houses you must check out. Every factor herein matters, and considering it brings you closer to your ideal home, it’s worth a try. Remember that houses vary in many ways, and finding your perfect match may take much work.