If you’ve never gone through the process of purchasing a home before, you may not know where to start. Fortunately, choosing the home of your dreams isn’t as difficult or as stressful as it sounds. However, you need to be willing to conduct plenty of research and learn as you go. Here are a few tips that will serve as the foundation of your first time home buyer education of what to look for when choosing a home to purchase.

Make a List

The first thing you should do is make a list of your home feature “wants” and “needs” when it comes to your ideal home. If possible, you should write the list in terms of the importance of each feature. Before you head into the market and start making huge decisions, you need to know exactly what you want. When compiling this list of desired home features, you should be realistic and take your budget into consideration.

Evaluation of Homes

With your budget-friendly list in hand, you are now equipped to go house-hunting. Ensure that you refer to this list when you look over a home and the property. It’s easy to be blinded by a few features of a home that happen to be captivating. For example, you may fall in love with a home because of its beautiful kitchen. However, said home may only have two bedrooms when you need three. Your list of desired home features will help you pick a home that meets the majority of your criteria.

Things to Look Out For

Before you even check out the interior of a home, you should take a look at the condition of the roof. Repairing a roof tends to be very pricey for homeowners, so you should avoid homes with damaged roofs or be sure to add roof replacement as a stipulation in your offer. You should also check out the condition of the heating and cooling systems, sewage systems, and the plumbing. Finally, examine the land around the home and ensure that the home isn’t susceptible to floods or wildfires.

Valuable Home Features

Ideally, you should invest in a house that is well-insulated and has new windows, as you will save money on your energy bills in the long run. Other valuable home features you could look out for include curb appeal, a central location, school district, and an excellent view.

First time home buyer education is paramount to ensure you choose the right home to put an offer on. If you want to fully educate yourself about the home buying process before making this life decision, download our eBook now!

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