Things To Consider When Buying A Home
When buying a home, it is easy to get caught up in emotions such
as love at first site. This can lead to disaster. The best way
to buy a home is to apply your daily life to it.
What Do You Do Daily?
Ask yourself what a typical day is like. Then, for any home that
seems like a real possibility, think about how you'd handle a
typical day there. Can family members shower and dress in a
timely fashion without getting into each other's way terribly?
Is there a good place to put on make-up? If someone needs
something quickly touched up with an iron, can you picture a way
to handle that?
Picture the way you and other family members handle breakfast
and lunch preparations if they're made at home. Can you see that
flowing well here?
What about evenings? Do you cook dinner at home and dine
together as a family regularly? Is there adequate counter space
near the sink, refrigerator, and stove? Can you picture
preparing a typical meal in comfort in this kitchen?
If you have school age children, what about homework? Do you and
they like a homework "station" near where you're working in the
kitchen tidying up after dinner and near where you're catching
up a few chores after that? Or do they do homework in their
rooms? Can a computer station, good light, etc. be arranged
where it's needed?
What about exercise? Does one or more family members take a
daily run? Use exercise equipment indoors? If so, where would
these things take place?
Weekly Chores and Hobbies
Are there grocery stores, dry cleaners, a library, a farmers'
market, or whatever retailers and service providers you and your
family use regularly near this home? If not, how would you
handle that? Does the home have places suitable for any messy
hobbies that matter to you and yours? Does anyone refinish
furniture, build models, work with clay, paint pictures? Can you
find a reasonable place for those activities?
What about the "enrichment" activities you have your children
enrolled in? How would you handle getting them to hockey
practice, dance class, and the like? Can they continue in the
programs they've been in, or will you have to find new ones? Is
the answer satisfactory?
Meaningful Infrequent Activities
If you're changing geographic locations and have a choice of
locating within, say, a fifty mile radius of your workplace, you
might want to consider the possibility of locating in several
different towns. "Trying on" living in each town can hinge on
availability of activities you do infrequently, but enjoy
greatly. For example, if you and your spouse really enjoy
concerts and plays, you can check out what's available in that
realm in each town and then focus your attention on the one you
like best.
You might even go to the trouble to write out a little "check
list" of things that matter to you and judge each home you're
thinking is a good possibility by how it measures up. You might
want to encourage other family members to do the same. This is
apt to increase the chance of your finding a new home in which
you're all very pleased with the quality of life you develop
after you move in.