Creating Your Dream Home List
As I’ve started my family, the idea of finding a perfect home is really important for us. While we’re still in the early stages of planning out our “dream home scenario”, I wanted to create an easy list of priorities/tips for anyone in the same situation.
Now keep in mind that while we are not aggressively looking to move within the next year, it is ideal to start thinking of the bigger picture now because we feel it’s right to be ready to move to the next big step.
Here are a few considerations we’ve made creating our Dream Home List:
“Where do we want to live?”
We know we want to live near our family, a long distance move isn’t in the cards for us. However, there are many other things to consider when looking for a home: Are there grocery stores, farmer’s markets, or doctor offices nearby? Are the schools a fit for our son? Are homes priced fairly and could we afford the going rate?
“What are the list of ‘must-haves’ for our home?”
-Large kitchen
-2-3 bedroom
-2 bathrooms
-Fenced-in backyard
-Garage
We’re pretty simple right now on our “must-haves” list. When we created this list, we talked about a lot of other details, like a fireplace, wrap-around porch, and a finished basement. We realized there would be a slim chance to get everything we wanted, so after deliberating we crossed a few items off the list or sub-categorized them as “Bonuses”.
Some of the items on our initial list were things we could live without, so we bumped them and found our options for homes to call our own increase.
“Are we willing to renovate?”
Renovations can be a lot of work and usually push off moving in. For our family, it would work well if we purchased a home under our budget price and felt comfortable doing some of the renovation ourselves. It would take longer to be move-in ready, but if that means getting a finished basement that we wouldn’t otherwise have, it could be worth the wait.
Don’t give up!
It’s easy to get discouraged while house-hunting, but it doesn’t have to be done alone. Contact one of ABECU’s mortgage loan officers to start talking about first-time homebuying. Downsizing or upgrading? ABECU can take care of that, too! Email us at realestate@abecu.org or call 1-877-269-4179.
What are/were the deciding factors of purchasing your dream home? Tell us in the comments below!
