Determining Your Lifestyle

These days, people tend to change jobs frequently, and often the best way to get a promotion is to move to another company. Should you be transferred, will you be able to sell quickly? How long do you want to spend commuting? Do you drive? Do some of your family members rely on public transportation?

As you can see, you will want to give some serious thought as to how long you intend to stay in your home. If it is your first home, give some thought to the resale value when it is time to upgrade. On the other hand, if you are planning to stay in your home for a long time, consider future needs and purchase a home that will accommodate them.

In addition to the needs, there is another category of features you should consider in looking for a home. These are called "wants" – things you would like to have if you can afford them and if they are available. As you contemplate the kind of home to buy, your strategy should be to find a home within your price range that fulfils all or most of your "needs" and as many of your "wants as possible.

Seeing What's Out There

Start reading the real estate ads in local newspapers, other publications as well as the Burlington Homes for Sale listings on my website. These ads will give you an idea of which communities best match your home and location criteria, and which have homes for sale – both new and resale within your price range. Drive through the communities that seem to be the most likely candidates. Check out the types of homes available in the area and how well the neighborhoods are maintained. This is also a good time to make note of schools, shopping, recreational sites and religious facilities. Become aware of potential drawbacks, too – railway tracks, highway noise, large industrial or manufacturing centers, airports, etc. Drive through the areas at different times of the day and night to learn about the pros and cons of the neighborhood.

Open houses provide you with a great chance to see inside some of the homes in the areas you are exploring.

Do You Live a Maintenance-Adverse Lifestyle?

When you are looking at homes, consider the advantages of brick over a wood frame house when it comes to painting. Take a look at the garden. If you don't enjoy cutting grass, then an expansive lawn may not fit your lifestyle. You can also evaluate the possibility of future maintenance and repairs based on the age of the house. If you don't like the idea of major renovations, a new home might be your best option.

Is Your Lifestyle More Geared to a Fixer-Upper Fantasy?

Many first time homebuyers have them, It goes something like this: You find a home in a great neighborhood that's well below what you would expect to pay for a house in that location. You see a couple coats of paint, new broadloom, a few repairs and voila, a dream home without a high price. Before you jump headlong into this "once in a lifetime opportunity", consider HOW you will do all that work. Will it be weeknights after a long day at the office, or will you hire someone? Are you ready to live in a dusty mess as you renovate, and more important: How does your spouse feel about it?

Do a realistic assessment of the job at hand and be sure to have the house inspected. The last thing you want is a bargain house that turns into a money pit. You might be far better off to find a house that costs a little more each month, but does not require much renovation; rather that to buy a fixer-upper that eats up hundreds of dollars each month. For example, lets say you could buy a really nice home with minimal work required for $10,000. more than the fixer-upper. At today's mortgage rates, assuming you could stay within your monthly budget, that really nice home would cost you only about $65. per month more than the fixer-upper.

No matter what kind of home you're looking for, there are some key features to consider. I always remind my clients that they will find large townhouses and small single-family homes, so looking for what you want in a home is as important as the type of dwelling.

• Where will your family spend most of its time? Kitchens are a popular family gathering area. Make sure your prospective kitchen can handle the traffic. You may also want an eat-in kitchen or one with a breakfast nook, allowing you to keep the dining room for special occasions.
• How much bedroom space do you need? Some people prefer small, plentiful rooms to house children, frequent guests or a home office. Others prefer fewer, larger rooms. Of course, if your budget permits, many large rooms would probably be ideal.
• Bathrooms are also a major point to consider. How many bathrooms does your family need to handle peak traffic times? Is one enough? (Not likely!) While one per person might be more like it, that dream may not be affordable. Make sure the home you're ready to purchase has sufficient bathroom space and that the bathrooms are comfortable. When looking at bathrooms, ask yourself how important a window is for light and fresh air. NOTE: hot water is always a problem with a large family. Remember, most hot water tanks are rented from the utility company. You can always have them upgrade the size of the hot water tank for a minimum cost.
• When it's time to relax and entertain, how will your prospective home meet your needs? Do you want a formal living room, or a room where your family can stretch out and watch television? Do your children need a play area or your teens an entertainment room? Some homes have a living room and a family room.
• Attics and basements can be wonderful storage areas, or can serve as additional living space. If extra space is important, you will want to consider a finished basement. Everyone seems to have his or her own definition of what this means. Take a good look at the workmanship. Did a professional do it? Do you see yourself redoing a sloppy job? A poorly finished basement can be more work than a completely unfinished area. Some signs to watch out for are moisture along the floor lines and corners of all exterior walls and pungent odors which may also be a sign of moisture, mildew and/or mold which can be costly to repair.
• A brief word about closets. Look at the clothes you have now. Add another half, and then look for closet space to hold it all. If you're like most of us, you'll never have enough closet space!
• Heating and cooling systems are also key features to consider. When it comes to heat, natural gas, oil and electric furnaces are all options. Older homes may even have hot-water radiators. Still other homes have baseboard heaters. Make sure you find out about the maintenance and condition of the heating system as well as annual operating costs. If you're thinking about air conditioning, think about how expensive it would be to add central air, or if a window unit would suffice.

When going through the process of buying a new home or selling yours, you may want to pay attention to the styles of houses available. For your convenience, here are some of the options:

• Single Family detached homes stand on their own lot and are designed to house one family. Some of these would include:

• Ranch – A single story swelling with a low roof
• Split-Level - This home may feature a finished basement with windows to create a lower living space, and a raised roof that offers room for bedrooms, often has 3 to 4 levels. This type of house can be side split or back split.

• Duplex has two units, one above the other, and is detached from neighboring homes.

• Semi-Detached offer two single-family homes attached by a common wall.

• Townhouses join several single-family units by common walls. Townhouses can be freehold or condominium.

• High-rise Condominium is simply a multistory residential building.

A Condominium is a type of property ownership, not just a style of home. When buying into a condominium complex, your home will usually cost less and you often won't have to worry about snow shoveling or lawn mowing, or major exterior maintenance like fencing or the roof. Condominiums can also come with extras like a security service or recreational facility. Of course, you should be prepared to pay a monthly maintenance fee. This fee goes into a collective cash reserve that is used to cover property maintenance, repairs, replacements and insurance.

Before you purchase a condominium home, do your research. Find out the value of the cash reserve and upcoming projects, which the reserve will fund. Ask about annual increases. Inquire about the management company and their reputation. And compare the maintenance fee to similar condominiums in the area.