Moving In: Setting Expectations
Buying your first "Dream" home (and setting expectations)
Shopping for your first home is a life changing experience. Your imagination will race with excitement and possibilities of all the things you can do in your dream property. But that is where most homeowners tend to get to ahead of themselves. Your dream property is just that, a dream, and your first home purchase might not be able to hold a candle to that image yet. That is not to say you won’t have your dream home eventually but in the meantime it is best to set some realistic expectations and goals for your first property.
Understanding what you have and what is out there
As you might know, the first step to finding a new home is getting pre-approved. This step will let you know what you have available to purchase with. Sometimes it is not enough to get you into brand new homes. Some homes will be older and with that will come with minor fixes. Most first-time home buyers should expect this. No home is absolutely perfect and some concessions will need to be made. Examples like a home may have no backyard but it is closer to work, etc…
Getting Settled (Noticing the little things)
After purchasing their first home many homeowners will eventually notice little things they may not like about a home. Sometimes these problems turn out to be bigger. Other times it is small upkeep one will have to do to keep the home in good condition.
The most common complaint from new homeowners, “When I bought a home that was approved of by the city, that passed code, I expected to get a home that was weatherproof and livable, and it’s just gotten continually worse over the past ten months,”. The best way to avoid any mounting issues is to be sure about your initial walkthrough and home inspection. A trusted home inspector can point out most, if not all, the faults of a home. And truthfully, many homebuyers fail to see any problems through their initial walkthroughs of the home.
