ajfries Posted April 20, 2014 Share Posted April 20, 2014 It's looking like we're going to start looking at a few houses to potentially buy one. There are a number of contenders in our price range & area and the geek in me wants to create a score sheet to objectively rate the houses :) What categories would be on your list? Yard Garage Square Footage Bedrooms (number & size) Bath (number & size) Kitchen Homeschool space Storage space Layout Flooring type & quality (would it need replaced soon?) Heating/Cooling system Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Happy Posted April 20, 2014 Share Posted April 20, 2014 LOCATION is the one thing you can't change. Even if you don't need the schools yourself, buy in a good system. First of all, it's good if you ever have to sell. Second, people in that area will value education. (Hopefully.) I tell my clients when you've found 85% of your list, give the house serious consideration. There are no perfect houses--there are, however, wonderful ones. Have FUN shopping! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gardenmom5 Posted April 20, 2014 Share Posted April 20, 2014 I recently went through this with my daughter, in a very hot sellers market. my advice would be to start getting an idea of what houses are selling for in relation to their asking price. what is the market like in your area for your price range? average list time? those bits of information will get you a better idea of how demanding can you be vs how flexible will you need to be to find a house that will be good for you. we used redfin.com in our area to follow stuff, it may or may not be in your area. but there are sites that pull from the mls and will give you the option of seeing what houses are selling for vs asking, and how long they were listed before they went pending. eta: I agree location. schools, services, accessibility. that really was #1 on dd's list. she wanted a short commute. (she was willing to drive 15 minutes, but ended up in walking distance to her job. she had eager sellers, who accepted her offer out of three first day offers. before the weekend when half-a-dozen more people wanted to put in an offer which would have quickly escalated the price. too late.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AmandaVT Posted April 20, 2014 Share Posted April 20, 2014 Having just finished extensive renovations in our current house: windows - are they 100 years old and rattling? Newer more energy efficient? roof condition signs of water damage/mold annual average electric bill/heating bill. Not sure where you're moving, but check if there are trees that are overhanging or near the roof. Squirrels can get in your attic if the trees are close enough (I wish I didn't know this) Condition of siding Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Twigs Posted April 20, 2014 Share Posted April 20, 2014 Street - My 1st choice would be a cul-de-sac. If I couldn't get that, I would look at the street layout in the neighborhood and pick the street with the least traffic, not the street that goes through the whole neighborhood. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luckymama Posted April 20, 2014 Share Posted April 20, 2014 Our list looked like this: Location (we wanted to be on the east side of the university for the neighborhoods and the schools (resale if needed)) Price (we casually watched the prices for a year) Number of bedrooms (four) Number of bathrooms (at least two full---we were living with 1.5) Space for kids to hang out and play (this was before homeschooling our youngest) Gardening space for me (enough sun and enough space) About six months before we were going to seriously look, a foreclosure in a fabulous neighborhood, across a protected green space and creek from my parents' house, was listed for sale. The secretary at my kids' school grabbed me that morning to show me the listing online. I called dh, who called a real estate agent friend, who made inquiries. We looked into the windows that afternoon and walked the property. Our offer was accepted that weekend....and then we had to sell the house we were living in! This house needed sooooooo much work, all cosmetic though. We got it for $100k less than other houses for sale at the same time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ethel Mertz Posted April 20, 2014 Share Posted April 20, 2014 We're house hunting too. Here is my little sheet I made. House Search Questions Address: Asking Price: $ Taxes: Utility costs: $ Square Feet: Acreage: Bedrooms/Bath: Town: Required and Desirable Characteristics 1. Master bedroom on 1st floor (all-on-one floor preferable) * 2. Gas heat * 3. Turn-key ready* 4. Not in a flood zone * 5. Minimum 3 bedrooms/2 baths* 6. No mold* 7. Room on 1st floor to dedicate to homeschool * 8. Dry basement* 9. Laundry on 1st floor* 10. Gas fireplace 11. Closets? Check bedrooms and also for coat closet 12. Storage areas in kitchen 13. Gas stove or electric? (gas preferred) - 14. Wood or tile floors preferred. No carpeting preferred. 15. Central air? 16. How many heat zones? 17. Garage? Other Notes: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
craftymama Posted April 20, 2014 Share Posted April 20, 2014 You've already been given some great answers, but a few other things I would consider... Does your furniture fit? Or are you willing to sell what you have to buy new? Is the garage wide enough for your needs? I've seen some garages that are literally no wider than the garage door making it impossible to actually park my car in the garage and get out of the vehicle. Is there over head lighting? If not, are you going to put it in? Do you have enough lamps or are you going to want to buy more? How big is the water heater and how old is it? Really think about the flow of the house. It doesn't do you any good to have a great location in a beautiful home that just doesn't work for your day to day life. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
solascriptura Posted April 20, 2014 Share Posted April 20, 2014 A good sized pantry or at least a space to build a pantry. This is a personal opinion though. Perhaps it isn't important to you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gingersmom Posted April 20, 2014 Share Posted April 20, 2014 Location, location, location After that my priorities were central air, age of house, attached 2 car garage, finished basement and number of bedrooms/bathrooms. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Catwoman Posted April 20, 2014 Share Posted April 20, 2014 You've already gotten the most important suggestions, but I'll add a few more... One very important thing to remember is to try not to pay attention to the furniture and accessories that are already in the house. It's so easy to become emotionally influenced by the current owner's style, and either fall in love with the wrong house or rule out one that could be perfect for your family. Another thing is to try to disregard paint colors, except if a room looks very dark to you. (Is it really dark, or is it the paint color, heavy window treatments, or something else that is making it appear dark?) But don't ignore wallpaper and hideous tile. Both of those are an expensive nuisance to get rid of! Pay a lot more attention to the condition and style of the kitchen and bathrooms than to things like ugly carpeting (or even the aforementioned wallpaper,) because kitchen and bathroom remodels can eat away at your renovation budget faster than almost anything else. If the basement leaks, RUN! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Erica in OR Posted April 20, 2014 Share Posted April 20, 2014 This ties in a bit with location, but consider the houses around you in the neighborhood. Our small city has streets that are such a mishmash of houses of different sizes and values. The street one down from ours has fancy, expensive houses nearly adjacent to very inexpensive ones where the owners have obviously not paid much attention to maintenance issues (some to the point of being eyesores). I'm guessing it would be more difficult to sell in the end if your house is one of the high-end ones in such an area. Erica in OR Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Woodland Mist Academy Posted April 20, 2014 Share Posted April 20, 2014 Windows! We love windows! Number, size, and shape ....do they open easily....do they leak.....how much natural light....what are the views Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
solascriptura Posted April 20, 2014 Share Posted April 20, 2014 You've already gotten the most important suggestions, but I'll add a few more... One very important thing to remember is to try not to pay attention to the furniture and accessories that are already in the house. It's so easy to become emotionally influenced by the current owner's style, and either fall in love with the wrong house or rule out one that could be perfect for your family. Another thing is to try to disregard paint colors, except if a room looks very dark to you. (Is it really dark, or is it the paint color, heavy window treatments, or something else that is making it appear dark?) But don't ignore wallpaper and hideous tile. Both of those are an expensive nuisance to get rid of! Pay a lot more attention to the condition and style of the kitchen and bathrooms than to things like ugly carpeting (or even the aforementioned wallpaper,) because kitchen and bathroom remodels can eat away at your renovation budget faster than almost anything else. If the basement leaks, RUN! Excellent points. I moved into a house covered in navy blue paint and ancient wallpaper. The drywall was not primed under the wallpaper. When we were removing the wallpaper, the drywall came off in chunks. It was a nightmare. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ajfries Posted April 20, 2014 Author Share Posted April 20, 2014 Thanks everyone! Good insight; I really like the 85% rule. It's really tricky because we live in a very small town (and would like to stay here) so there is only the one school district. All the houses we're going to be considering are fixer uppers, but I really want a house with "good bones". I'd really like a good garage (and DH would probably put that in his top 3 priorities) but there are very few attached garages in this area, due to the age of most houses, I think. That's a real bummer because DH just finished building our attached 2 car garage last summer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ottakee Posted April 20, 2014 Share Posted April 20, 2014 Look at the FLOW of the house. Imagine yourself bringing in groceries, cooking supper, doing laundry, etc. Some houses can have the same number of rooms but they lay out just doesn't flow the way your family lives. It is suggested that you look for the lower priced homes in nicer neighborhoods. When we moved we were very limited as to what we could chose from as we needed 5+ acres in our current township and there were just very few for sale and some owners wanted to really jack up the prices as they knew there were several of us all looking for the same thing that were being ousted from our current homes/mini farms by the highway project. Our current house has a great flow for our family and has a main floor bedroom and bath---very important for us as we have handicapped parents. It is a bit larger than we really need but the price was lower than the others we were looking at and it had the 5 acres we needed for our horses............and a pole barn for my dh to have his auto repair stuff. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spryte Posted April 21, 2014 Share Posted April 21, 2014 Has this been said already? ...Where is the laundry room?? If it is not next to the bedrooms or in some other *very* convenient place, can it be moved closer? Moving into a 3 story house with bedrooms on 3rd floor, laundry room in (finished) basement didn't seem like a big deal to me when there were just two of us. Multiply that laundry a few times, and that equals a lot of treks up and down the stairs with toddlers, or dashing up or down while kiddos entertain themselves. Never again. Nope. Not happening. Laundry convenience is at the top of my list. :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BlsdMama Posted April 22, 2014 Share Posted April 22, 2014 For us, it was about: 1. Outdoor space 2. Location (commuting distance/time/ease for dh as well as our ability to participate in a larger community homeschool activities) 3. Lighting (Windows, ceilings) 4. Kitchen - size and location in the home. We didn't care if it needed extensive renovation to be our dream kitchen, but it needed to have the ability to BE a wonderful, functional kitchen. Less important but still notable: 1. A good basement. Finished or not we wanted to have the option to have that useable space and, Midwest girl, still scared of tornadoes. 2. Bedrooms/bathrooms - number and size for functionality with multiple children 3. Not a deal breaker but I really wanted a fireplace or wood burner 4. DH really wanted a good sized garage or wood shop and ideally heated Least important: Updating Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BlsdMama Posted April 22, 2014 Share Posted April 22, 2014 Oops. And high on the wishlist was first floor, moderate size laundry area, and either a mud room or a FUNCTIONAL entry way for kids with dirty little feet to shove boots. ;) The house we're trying to buy right now has a mud room between the garage and the laundry room, linoleum, area for boots, half bath, and walks straight into the laundry room. Ideal for me! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ajfries Posted April 25, 2014 Author Share Posted April 25, 2014 I took your guys' input & created a checklist. I thought I'd share since you all contributed :) And also, I spent an unreasonable amount of time on it so sharing it will make me feel better about that. ;) I hope it works, it's an Open Office doc, so we'll see :) https://drive.google.com/file/d/0By90d8qoezF1R2ZPMlFaSjFLWXM/edit?usp=sharing Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lara in Colo Posted April 25, 2014 Share Posted April 25, 2014 Decide what you hate about your current house and what you CANNOT live with-- Our last house had mean neighbors and a strict HOA my absolute requirement with this house was a large yard with trees (so the neighbors couldn't see me in the back yard) and no HOA. I don't really like my house (bi-level) but we have been so happy here!! the neighbors are great and there is no HOA to tell me what to do -- no one complains when the children leave stuff in the yard or I wait an extra week to mow. The backyard is a forest and I can sit there in the summer no one can see me (we lost the children in the yard the first summer before we cleared some brush). I feel safe and happy and left alone-- not judged and watched like before. So decided what makes you feel "at home" and go with that. It could be neighbors near by and brand new houses full of young children and mothers that stay and drink coffee all day. It could be a neighborhood with security and a large gated community. It could be a stone's throw from the beach. Like others have said-- location is what you cannot change (there are other things as well--like mold and termites) the rest can be changed. In that same thought--- I thought things could be changed-- but underestimated my DH. He works too much and never does house projects-- I wish I had bought a house that needed less work -- although this house was the only for sale in the whole neighborhood at the time-- I don't think the choice of house could be avoided, I wish I had set aside some money for upgrades that I thought we would do later.-- then I could hire someone to do them Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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