What do I look for when looking for a house?

[kittieb]

I'm just wondering since we're moving soon, and I need to know what to look for and what to avoid.

[Victoria]

Originally Posted by kittieb I'm just wondering since we're moving soon, and I need to know what to look for and what to avoid.

I'm not sure of what you're exactly asking, but here it goes...

For me, location is at the top of my list. I also look at the sex offender list for the prospective area. I also look at crime rate. Scope out the neighborhood and neighbors. Is it safe?

In the actual house, I make sure the house has the number of bedrooms and bathrooms I want. Having a closed garage is also preferred. Is street parking safe and possible for a second vehicle? I also make sure to have my furniture measurements on hand, to make sure it will all fit properly. Yard work...is there a lot to manicure? Are neighborhood animals a nuisance? Good outside lighting? Not in a flood zone? All windows and doors lock properly?

Distance to work/school with and without traffic...do a mock drive.

[*Kim*]

Is there adequate storage space... thats usually a big one for me. Will there be enough room in the kitchen for food and kitchen gadgets and appliances. If you are renting... is there laundry facility or laundry hook ups. I wont play the laundry mat game again... What condition are the walls where it attaches to the ceilings and baseboards in? If the walls are separating from the ceilings it can kind of tell you what condition the foundation may be in and how much the house has shifted. What are the neighbors like?

It really all depends on what you want personally. Do you have kids? Schools are usually something you should look at to make sure they are going to be able to offer your children the education they need.

[Victoria]

Originally Posted by kdlansdale Is there adequate storage space... thats usually a big one for me. Will there be enough room in the kitchen for food and kitchen gadgets and appliances. If you are renting... is there laundry facility or laundry hook ups. I wont play the laundry mat game again... What condition are the walls where it attaches to the ceilings and baseboards in? If the walls are separating from the ceilings it can kind of tell you what condition the foundation may be in and how much the house has shifted. What are the neighbors like? It really all depends on what you want personally. Do you have kids? Schools are usually something you should look at to make sure they are going to be able to offer your children the education they need.

Yep! There's really so much that goes into looking for a new place to live. It would take me a very long time to type it all out.

[kittieb]

Originally Posted by kdlansdale Is there adequate storage space... thats usually a big one for me. Will there be enough room in the kitchen for food and kitchen gadgets and appliances. If you are renting... is there laundry facility or laundry hook ups. I wont play the laundry mat game again... What condition are the walls where it attaches to the ceilings and baseboards in? If the walls are separating from the ceilings it can kind of tell you what condition the foundation may be in and how much the house has shifted. What are the neighbors like? It really all depends on what you want personally. Do you have kids? Schools are usually something you should look at to make sure they are going to be able to offer your children the education they need.

Great advice, we don't have kids but i felt pretty good knowing that the kids that go to the schools there really liked it, and loved the atmosphere.

[kittieb]

Originally Posted by Victoria I'm not sure of what you're exactly asking, but here it goes... For me, location is at the top of my list. I also look at the sex offender list for the prospective area. I also look at crime rate. Scope out the neighborhood and neighbors. Is it safe? In the actual house, I make sure the house has the number of bedrooms and bathrooms I want. Having a closed garage is also preferred. Is street parking safe and possible for a second vehicle? I also make sure to have my furniture measurements on hand, to make sure it will all fit properly. Yard work...is there a lot to manicure? Are neighborhood animals a nuisance? Good outside lighting? Not in a flood zone? All windows and doors lock properly? Distance to work/school with and without traffic...do a mock drive.

Will do!

[jocain327]

Are you buying or renting??

Either way, washer and dryer in the house, no parking issues, and not near a train are all important things to me, whether renting or buying!

[kittieb]

We're still not sure if we even will like the area so renting for a year, then buying if we like the area enough.

[Michele]

Schools were at the top of the list for us. We wanted our children to get the best education possible so we had a clear picture on what towns we would and wouldn't live in. Other things we considered were acerage, square footage, age, size of rooms, style, privacy, garage, layout, fireplace, heat, etc..