5 Steps to Prepare for House Hunting
June 14, 2022
June 14, 2022
Before you attend your first open house, take some time to imagine your ideal home. Follow these steps to match your dreams with reality once you hit the homebuying market.
You’ve heard it before: location, location, location. Before deciding anything else about what your future home will look like, you need to decide where you will live.
The location you choose will determine several key factors of your new home and life worth considering:
After location, cost is one of the most important criteria in the homebuying process. Understanding what you can afford helps narrow your focus and minimize stress. You'll want to work closely with your lender to determine what you can comfortably afford.
To determine the affordability of a neighborhood, review:
Your options are plentiful when it comes to the size and layout of potential homes, and each comes with positives and negatives. Explore your home type options to decide which one is best for you.
Before buying a home, you should consider how long you plan to live there and how your needs might change over the years. Think about whether you might need an extra bedroom or two for a family down the road. At the same time, it’s best practice to be mindful of your budget and how much space you can afford.
A homebuying wish list can help you identify and prioritize what you need, versus what you want, in a future home. Categories on your wish list may include:
Once you’ve determined your wish list, you can easily check against it to keep yourself on track while you look for homes in person and online.
There will likely come a time when you decide to sell your home. If this isn't your forever home, it's important to consider what features will appeal to future buyers.
Here are some things to consider that can impact the resale value of a home:
Ask your agent about market conditions and whether the property would be easy to sell in the future.
For more information about the homebuying process, visit My Home by Freddie Mac®.