If you’ve found a home that you want to buy, it's important to remember that there are also a few other things you need to take into consideration before diving in and signing on the dotted line. A home is a huge commitment so you need to make sure it's right and not something you will regret later on! Plus there are some hidden costs and issues that you might not have thought about.
Don’t Forget The Additional Costs
It is rarely as simple as needing to pay the cost of the house. Depending on which country, or even part of the country, you are in there will be additional costs attached to buying any house. You will need to add these up and make sure that you didn’t max your budget out on the house alone because you don’t want these extra to mean you can’t buy your house. Before you commit to doing anything, lay out all of the costs in front of you so that you are happy with it.
Secure a Mortgage
Once you have decided to buy a house, if you aren’t going to buy it outright (and let’s be honest, who has that sort of money laying around), then you are going to need a mortgage. This will involve booking a meeting with a bank and get a quote for your mortgage. How good a mortgage you get will depend on what your credit score is and if you have a poor one, then you might get rejected. However, this is one of the only ways normal people can afford to get on the property ladder.
Hire a Building Surveyor
Once you have had a look around the house and if you like it enough to want to consider buying it, then it is probably worth getting a building surveyor in to check it out. They will check to make sure that everything is working correctly and they will likely catch things that the realtor or sellers have neglected to point out. They will also help spot any deal breakers such as damp or mould, faulty wiring, structural instability and many other things you might not have considered. You should always have a building surveyor visit a building before committing to buying a house because that perfect home might be liable to fall down to a light breeze, but nobody told you up to that point. They aren’t that expensive and should just be factored into your budget for buying a house. You will be happy you got one if it turns out there are things with the house you were looking to buy, and you will feel safe in the knowledge that everything is alright if the building surveyor turns up nothing.
Don't Forget the Legal Stuff
There is a lot of legal things that need to be sorted when buying a house. You will need to hire conveyancing solicitors to legally transfer the property from one person to another. They are necessary and ensure that nothing illegal is going on. The lawyers are professionals who have spent years working in this area, so if you have any questions about the process do not be afraid to ask them anything.
Talk To The Neighbors
Before you commit to buying a house, you should speak with the neighbors. They will often be able to tell you more candidly what living in the area is like. This is simply because they have nothing to gain by exaggerating, so they might be able to let you know about any issues they have had. It is also a good idea to get to know the people who live nearby early on and start to build a neighborly relationship with them. After all, you will probably see them most days once you have moved in. Now, a bad neighbor is not a reason to give up on the move entirely, but you do not want to be stuck living next to someone who might be horrible to have next door. It can definitely go into the ‘con’ column when you are weighing your options.
Check The Area
You will want to see what the local area has to offer as well as seeing what the house is like. Is this area the sort of place that you can see yourself living for the foreseeable future? If the answer is no, then you might want to reconsider buying this particular house. However, there are also practical things that you should check out. For example, if you have kids then you will want to see what the local school is like and how far away it is. You might want to move closer to a specific school to be in a catchment area or move away from a school with a bad reputation. There are also smaller details such as is there a store nearby where you can pick up groceries easily or do you need to drive a few miles to reach one? How will each of these affect your life on a daily basis? You should always fully explore the local area to make sure that you are happy with moving and so that you know what to expect when you do.
Do You Love It?
This one is the kicker, do you love it? If the answer is no, then you might have the wrong house. It can be hard to find the perfect house that ticks every box without any downsides, but they do occasionally appear. While you can’t always wait for a house of this caliber to go on the market, you can ask yourself if you would be happy living in a house. Do its positives outweigh the negatives? It can sometimes be hard if your wife or husband loves a house a lot more than you do and what you do in this circumstance. Do you try to convince them to look elsewhere or do you try to see things from their perspective? I’ll leave that one to you. At the end of the day though, buying a house is a massive commitment and one that should not be made lightly. Instead, you need to take your time and ensure that you are happy with spending the next 5, 10 or even 15 years at this address and in this area.
