If you were to buy a house, what is most important to you?

Would it be quality of schools, a nice neighborhood, garage, lot size, a certain area? Since I've starting looking for another house, I can't find anything I like. Either the houses are too close together or the backyard drops off like a cliff or it's located on a highway. I'm not really asking for a lot, but WTH!! This is going to be a long process.

Bulls Beers said:

Would it be quality of schools, a nice neighborhood, garage, lot size, a certain area? Since I've starting looking for another house, I can't find anything I like. Either the houses are too close together or the backyard drops off like a cliff or it's located on a highway. I'm not really asking for a lot, but WTH!! This is going to be a long process.

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A mix of things, really. Nice neighborhood, good schools and a decent yard for the kids were very important when we bought our house.

We like to entertain, so we wanted someplace that would give us room to do so. We got that, but for any decent-sized gathering, we need weather that allows us to be outdoors, as the indoors isn't great for entertaining.

We made some tradeoffs on floorplan and some other areas, but all in all we got something that fit our lifestyle very well.

I'd say pay attention to resale value. Odd houses can be difficult to sell if you need to get out due to a job change etc.


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Here are the things that would factor into my next house:

A basement with a sump pump that doesn't run 24/7 so you're not afraid to leave for even a weekend

Make sure there isn't a outdoor shooting range down the block

Make sure it has a chimney and not a power vent

Have another source of heat other than oil

Make sure the local schools aren't using some half-@ssed standards-based grading system that causes success to actually decrease

Buy as much land as you can afford so you are away from other people as much as possible

If you have Kids neighborhoods and schools are very important, Past that it is what you can comfortably afford.

bwarbiany said:

A mix of things, really. Nice neighborhood, good schools and a decent yard for the kids were very important when we bought our house.

We like to entertain, so we wanted someplace that would give us room to do so. We got that, but for any decent-sized gathering, we need weather that allows us to be outdoors, as the indoors isn't great for entertaining.

We made some tradeoffs on floorplan and some other areas, but all in all we got something that fit our lifestyle very well.

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These are some of the things we want to. There are a lot of Colonial type homes in the area that we like and we want a house to entertain in with more than an acre. Schools are really good and most of the streets are quiet. I guess we'll find it eventually. I also need some good storage and a basement that I can finish for a bar or a brewery.

I know this won't apply for most folks, but I like public transit access. I like living 2 blocks from Metro (or the T or MTA or BART or whichever relevant city you happen to be in). Easier on my wife since she works downtown, and easier on me when I want to go out drinking.

Of course, that necessitates a higher cost and smaller space, but I'm ok with that.

My first consideration would be neighbors. I enjoy shooting and having fires and I could never live in a city where everyone lives on top of one another. My neighbors would always be on me about one thing or another.

Good public schools. Period.

That is the number one factor in resale value in pretty much every part of the country (and I have lived all over the country)

Location. I am the kind of guy that needs a rural setting. Others may need to live in an urban environment. And still others may require a suburb. If you try to live in an area not meant for your requirements you're not going to be happy.


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Location is my main thing too. I'd really not have any neighbors at all, but until I get my 40 acres & a mule I'm stuck with people around. The fewer, the better in my book. I like to garden, so having a suitable space for that would be nice. Size is important, but honestly, I'd rather live in a small house out in the boonies with no neighbors than a large house in town. And quiet, it needs to be quiet. A few large trees would be nice too, but I'd plant trees anyway.
Just my 2 cents worth. Regards, GF.

Absolutely need my space. Actually just moved into the biggest home we've ever lived in this past weekend. That's not saying alot considering all we've ever lived in was 2 bedroom apartments but its bigger and I like it. That being said I'm ok with the size of the house not being bigger because the few neighbors I have all seem to be really quiet. Hell the one to our left travels alot with her rich sister so she barely there anyways. Its also way out in the country so I can shoot when I want to and walk outside in my boxers and pee on a tree if I want.

Me? I bought a place that is non HOA. I know we have gone off on rants about them in other threads, but that was one of my necessities. My other requirements are a decent/good neighborhood as I like to be able to be outside and do not want my stuff stolen or destroyed and the house being solid or at least have good bones so that I can fix it up into something that will hang around. I also like having a yard I can entertain in as well as decent neighbors that do not complain about every little thing I do.

On the plus side my next door neighbor who for the past two years would not say more than a grunt to me when I said hello came by while I was brewing yesterday to ask if I was frying a turkey. We then shot the sh*t for an hour during the mash. He seems to be warming up to me. Maybe in a few years he will tolerate me more and we can possibly become friends.

I met my wife in NYC, and while we ultimately moved down here (Austin, TX) because we wanted space/yard for our family, living in a walkable neighborhood was an absolute requirement. By "walkable", I mean that we didn't want to always have to get in the car every time we wanted to go anywhere/do anything. So while we're not in the heart of town, we do live walking distance from a pub, a good Mexican restaurant, beer store, etc.

Far away from the in-laws.... Learn from my mistakes.

I have kids, so first thing is no registered sex offenders. Second is school district. Third is HOA/restrictions. Last is whether or not it is sufficient for what we need from a house.

bwarbiany said:

A mix of things, really. Nice neighborhood, good schools and a decent yard for the kids were very important when we bought our house.

We like to entertain, so we wanted someplace that would give us room to do so. We got that, but for any decent-sized gathering, we need weather that allows us to be outdoors, as the indoors isn't great for entertaining.

We made some tradeoffs on floorplan and some other areas, but all in all we got something that fit our lifestyle very well.

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This.
I traded a horrible 26 miles commute for a horrible 48 mile commute but got a 3900 sqft house on a 0.75 acre property with a finished basement, pool and wonderful neighbors. Schools are also much better (9/10 instead of 3/10). Make sure your neighborhood is good. Your property value will rise and fall with it. A mansion in a ghetto area will sooner or later become ghetto too.

Cider123 said:

Here are the things that would factor into my next house:

A basement with a sump pump that doesn't run 24/7 so you're not afraid to leave for even a weekend

Make sure there isn't a outdoor shooting range down the block


Buy as much land as you can afford so you are away from other people as much as possible

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Our house had a trap range about a half mile away when we bought it. I was really bummed when it closed about 3 months after we bought the place.

Yes to as much land as possible. Enough and you can put in your own shooting range.

Commute distance. I saw it kind of referenced here. Whats the importance of being in town if the majority of your time is taken getting out of town to work the majority of the week? I lived in several parts of NH. Do you feel comfortable saying where you're looking or working? You don't have to say but there's some good other towns too. Atkinson, Pelham, Windham, Hollis, Hudson. I wouldn't move to NH unless it's at least 100 miles from the border. Anything under 100 and there's too many Massachusetts transplants.

Always remember: A good neighbor is worth their weight in halal meat.

paulster2626 said:

Always remember: A good neighbor is worth their weight in halal meat.

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Or in my case, free home-made tamales.

A secret room filled with Gold.

paulster2626 said:

Always remember: A good neighbor is worth their weight in halal meat.

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In what meat?

Outbuildings are important to me: detached garage, dedicated workshop, storage sheds, etc.

If they're in place when you buy, you won't have to deal with idiotic building & Safety Department bureaucrats - and even more idiotic neighbors...

jhoneycutt said:

In what meat?

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Putting it very simplistically, halal is the Muslim counterpart to Jewish kosher.

troy2000 said:

Putting it very simplistically, halal is the Muslim counterpart to Jewish kosher.

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Ooo

Yummm... ethnic food. Pick an ethnicity.

Too many things to list. Can I afford it is #1

Everything is important. My wife and I are looking to buy now and it's pretty difficult to decide on anything, but last time I did this I looked and looked until I found something I just knew was right. All of the main points have been brought up, location, schools, etc.. Hint on schools, even if it doesn't matter to you now, it may matter in the future, and it matters a lot to potential buyers when it comes time to sell. I had a hell of a time trying to sell my house in another state that wasn't in a good school district, finally gave up and had renters move into it yesterday.

Personally, I'm firmly in the "no HOA" camp, don't want the work of a big yard, want to be close to restaurants and fun stuff to do, and schools are only a priority for resale right now. It's pretty tough to choose your neighbors, but you can usually get a good feel for a neighborhood by driving and/or walking through it at various times of the day.

Good Luck! Buying a house is a lot of fun if you have the right attitude about it.

Agreed: Don't be house poor is #1.

Also: Not too close to the city. Not too far away from work. Quiet. At least one extra bedroom to convert to an office.

There are a lot of obvious things to look for but one thing I rememebr was not being too far from a major interstate (assuming I wasn't planning on relocating evey time I changed jobs). I made sure my drive to a major highway was not too far so I could quicly get to places if I had to change jobs. You move too far from a major highway your next commute to work could be an hour plus. I also was able to live out in a rural area, nice and quiet.

Of course the houses that are on the market are either 1) the ones nobody wants, or 2) way overpriced.

Appropriately priced houses with decent features, environment, etc... are snapped up as soon as they hit the market. You've got to be very fast. Best thing is if you have a realtor working for you and tell her exactly what you are looking for - not to waste your time trying to show you everything else. Even then, you've got to be very fast - if you are the first to see it and you like it, you can not wait til tomorrow to make an offer because somebody else will offer before you - you need to step around the corner with your spouse, talk it over for 10 minutes and then make the offer immediately.

That is, if you want to find a decent house then you need to understand how to shop for houses.

podz said:

Of course the houses that are on the market are either 1) the ones nobody wants, or 2) way overpriced.

Appropriately priced houses with decent features, environment, etc... are snapped up as soon as they hit the market. You've got to be very fast. Best thing is if you have a realtor working for you and tell her exactly what you are looking for - not to waste your time trying to show you everything else. Even then, you've got to be very fast - if you are the first to see it and you like it, you can not wait til tomorrow to make an offer because somebody else will offer before you - you need to step around the corner with your spouse, talk it over for 10 minutes and then make the offer immediately.

That is, if you want to find a decent house then you need to understand how to shop for houses.

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This is not really true though.

There are many reasons why a house may be for sale, and there are many reasons why it would not be bought right away.

There are some situations where multiple buyers appear, but to say that any houses on the market and not bought within a week are crap is absurd.

For instance, we moved last summer. We had no offers for 2 weeks, then suddenly 2 buyers were intersted and we had a bidding war. The home we purchased had been on the market for 2 months.

what are the taxes

paulster2626 said:

This is not really true though.

There are many reasons why a house may be for sale, and there are many reasons why it would not be bought right away.

There are some situations where multiple buyers appear, but to say that any houses on the market and not bought within a week are crap is absurd.

For instance, we moved last summer. We had no offers for 2 weeks, then suddenly 2 buyers were intersted and we had a bidding war. The home we purchased had been on the market for 2 months.

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Yeah, this is definitely a situation that varies one market to the next. In big sellers markets, that is the case, a house that is priced right will have offers within days, but in smaller markets and if there is a lot of inventory for sale that won't be the case.

Also, if a house is initially overpriced, but then lowered (as is the case with one I looked at this weekend) it may sit on the market at an inflated price for a long time before it is sold.