When you set out to buy a house, you might want to see every home you come across. However, that’s not really practical. Even with a realtor helping you, you may still end up with a huge list of houses you want to take a look at. Some people start out looking at one or two homes, but by the time they settle on one, they’ve been inside dozens.
The problem really only comes when you’ve found two or three homes you really like but that don’t quite fulfill all of the things on your must-have list. When do you decide to settle for one of these houses and when do you decide to keep looking?
If you’ve looked at less than a dozen or so homes, you should probably keep looking unless you have to find a home very quickly. There’s a good chance you’ll still be able to find a house that meets all of your needs, so keep up the search.
On the other hand, if you’ve looked at several dozen homes or are getting close to your “must-move-by” date, it might be time to settle. That’s fine if you’ve got several homes you can see yourself living in. Take a look at the houses you’ve seen that you really liked and decide if any of them are going to meet your needs. What’s that house really missing? Is it a deal-breaker? Could you later remodel the house or add on to make it perfect?
One way to decide if there’s a better house out there for you is to talk to your realtor. He or she will have an idea of what houses are available in the area and which, if any, may match your needs. If there aren’t any homes for sale that have what you’re looking for and your realtor doesn’t know of any that may be on the market soon, it might be time to re-evaluate your “must-have” list.
Look at your budget. Have you found that the homes that meet your “must-have” list are all out of your price range? If that’s the case, you may not be able to find a home that meets all of your criteria and your budget. Again, you may need to re-evaluate what you’re looking for in a house. Your realtor can help you decide if all of the things on your must-have list are realistic for your budget and the area in which you want to live.