First of all, CONGRATULATIONS on your decision to buy a house!!! This is an exciting time – yet, can also be overwhelming. So many variables to consider & many you don’t want to overlook. What makes a house perfect? Well, this is very personal. I can’t tell you what is perfect for you, but I can definitely guide you!
Questions I would ask yourself:
1. The number one question would be do you want to live in a single-family residence, a condo, or a townhome. Here is the difference if you don’t already know:
What is a condo exactly? Think of a condo as an apartment unit that you own. It’s low maintenance. No need to worry about anything that is outside of your 4 walls. Mainly the lawn & landscaping. There’s usually also plenty of amenities including community pools, gyms, & other features.
A townhouse, similar to a condo in that is “attached”, shares 1 or more walls with your neighbor.
A house is free-standing (detached) & gives you more privacy than the 2 up above. Definitely more maintenance. However with a house, unlike a condo, there are way less restrictions, usually more space, & more ownership.
2. Competing for the number 1 spot is: LOCATION, LOCATION, LOCATION…
For me, it was just a natural progression of houses we lived in before this. We love this area & just always found houses close by. The main things for us had to do with having children: safety, family-friendly, & close to schools. I loved the idea of a master-planned community as it feels more like a small town inside of a big city. And one thing that is inexplicable, is just a gut-feeling. The “energy”.
For you, maybe it’s that you don’t want to be far from work. Maybe you want to be close to particular schools, especially if your kids are already in a Las Vegas school. You may want to stay in the same district.
Perhaps you are don’t have kids & are more carefree needing a low-maintenance home like a condo. I know in my younger years, I would’ve loved to live in a loft Downtown. Especially these days where they have these cool urban-styled lofts like Juhl.
Maybe you want to be in the heart of a community that has plenty of shopping, restaurants, & events like the District in Green Valley. Lake Las Vegas is an incredible community that is more like it’s own little town.
It’s also wise to look at the resale value of the location you are planning to buy. Does the neighborhood have potential, is it growing? Is there land development taking place around the property? This would definitely mean the home may appreciate (increase in price).
3. How big? How many bedrooms & baths?
This may depend on how many people are planning to live in the house. Maybe it’s just the 2 of you now & a big house is not necessary. So maybe think of a 2-bedroom apartment size which averages about 1000 sq. ft. or so, with maybe 2 bedrooms & 2 baths. But maybe you 2 are planning on having a growing family. Then of course something bigger would be better to accommodate everyone. Tack on an extra bedroom for each addition you are planning for. If you’re on your own, even a 1 or 2 bedroom with 1 full bath 800 sq. ft. home would work.
Big family? Well, closer to 2,000 or 3,000 sq. ft. would give everyone enough breathing room. When kids are younger, a smaller space feels like enough. However, as they get older, a larger space – closer to 2,500 sq. ft. would be ideal.
Do you work from home? This is a big one nowadays especially where you would want/need an extra room for a home office.
4. What is my/our lifestyle? Where do I/we spend most of my time?
I bought my house at a time when all that mattered to me was having my own space that resembled a loft as I was always drawn to the loft style studio-like spaces. When I walked into this house I currently live in, I fell in love as I had envisioned exactly this type of home with cathedral ceilings flooding the house with natural light, 2 stories, a cute front patio…
NOW, after being here for 3 years, I have really realized that in addition to having large open space with high ceilings, I spend most of my days, life – in the KITCHEN! And you know what? My kitchen is really not equipped to handle me cooking 3 times a day for 4 people. Not enough counter space, cabinet space…just SPACE. We are all on top of each other if there is more than 1 person. It’s truly designed for maybe just a couple or bachelor. Someone who doesn’t spend their life cooking & doing dishes. Cathedral ceilings & natural light are great & all for a bachelorette LOL – but for a mom of 2 that cooks ALL THE TIME & growing children that are also in the kitchen quite a bit – not so practical.
The other thing I didn’t think of long-term, was having we have 1 bedroom on bottom floor & 2 including the Master on the upper level. The 1st year was ok since I had both my girls in the room on the top floor. However, you know how it goes, they wanted separate rooms, so we moved my eldest downstairs. This has been a challenge since my older daughter wanted to be on the same level as all of us.
Having a large bedroom on the 1st floor however is GREAT in a lot of other cases. If you have older parents that don’t wanna climb stairs, if you live with a roommate & like the space & privacy by having rooms on separate floors, or maybe a teenager that likes being away from everyone.
For our individual family: all bedrooms on same level!
5. Single or double-story?
For me, the 1st time around when deciding on a house, I was already used to living in 1-story homes. I wasn’t a fan of stairs & was practically scared of having to go up & down stairs all day.
Fast-forward a decade, my life changed. I became way more active & driven in my career (graphic/web design at the time). I was on the go all the time & I was feeling way more capable & free since my kids were getting older & not in the scary “omg, they might fall down the stairs!😱” stage. I also liked more BREATHING room & a single-story was not giving me that space.
But, for anyone who doesn’t want to be on a Stairmaster all day long – having to go up & down the stairs, definitely look into getting a 1-story. It IS a bit more challenging finding 1-stores as there are not as many choices, but just keep looking till you find it!
6. Do I need a back yard? If so, do I want it to be large? With a pool or not?
For me, when deciding on my current home, the back yard was not important. I mean, it KINDA was as I love to spend evenings on the outdoor patio or days (when it’s not 115°😅!)…but at the time, I just got a full-time job & knew I wouldn’t have time to even think about hangin’ out outside. Now? Having a backyard WITH A POOL is a necessity! Stuck inside with kids + the whole COVID/stay-at-home + 115° heat – a pool is definitely important.
7. BUDGET. How much should I/we spend on a house?
I personally like to go by monthly payments. Looking at the total price, to me, makes little sense unless you are planning on paying for the house in full. Otherwise, for most of us, it’s about the monthly. The link below will help you to get a general idea of what
https://www.nerdwallet.com/mortgages/how-much-house-can-i-afford/calculate-affordability
You may of course want to look at the down payment. If this is your 1st home purchase, you could probably qualify for an FHA (Federal Housing Administration) loan. This allows you to put a down-payment as low as 3.5% of the house price making it much more affordable.
If you or your spouse is in or were in the military, you may qualify for a VA loan = 0% down!
The 3rd type of loan is a Conventional Loan. Generally speaking, this is about 20% down. However, you can sometimes, depending on your credit score go as low as 3% down.
There are really so many options. The best way to determine how much house you can afford would be to talk to a lender.
8. Age of home.
We’ve been in this house only 4 years, however it was built in 2006. As of this year (2020), the house is almost 15 years old. So far, we have had to fix & replace several items. One of which is the air-conditioning. Our summers in Vegas are brutal to say the least. I love them as I am more of summer person & would much prefer the heat over the cold any day. BUT, the heat puts a lot of stress on the air-conditioning units. Currently, the problem we are having would cost is thousands of dollars which is one of the reasons we have decided to move into a new-build. Newly-constructed homes are built with energy-conservation in mind. Some even including solar panels which reduce your energy bills to a tenth of a normal monthly bill.
My parents for instance, use solar. Their energy bill is about $15/month. Mine, about $250/month. That’s over $200/month savings!
Anyway, the point is, I personally prefer new construction for this reason. I like that the home is under warranty, the AC unit is brand new, the walls are better insulated for more efficient energy use, & well, EVERYTHING is brand new!
Of course, with a resale, you probably would get more for your money, a yard that is already landscaped, maybe even a pool. It’s possible you would have more upgrades in a resale as they are included in price, whereas with a new-build, you would be adding upgrade costs to the base price. This can add up pretty fast making a $300K house all the sudden a $400K house lol.
There are many pros & cons to both options. Sometimes, the best way is just to tour both types of properties & feel it out. Not everything can be decided from the get-go.
9. Storage. Do you have a lotta stuff to store? If so, well, it’s obvious. Vegas doesn’t have basements whereas back in Kansas – my home state – we could be secret hoarders stuffing our basements with boxes of crap. Here, everyone who can get a glimpse into your garage gets a glimpse into your life! Seeing just how organized you really are. Less storage space means more decisions on what to let go of. For me, it’s super hard because I have so many boxes/bins with our daughters’ baby clothes, drawings, stuffed animals, etc. I just can’t let go of😭!
So, if you’re a rat pack like me, having extra storage space is key.
10. Exterior. Who doesn’t want to live in a home that is beautiful on the outside? I know I do! But you know what, the house we just picked – I can’t say I love the outside. To me, I live on the INSIDE of the house. To stay within budget, I had to compromise a bit & leave the exterior behind. For you, maybe the outside IS important & your budget allows you to be a bit more discerning. I LOVE the outside of our current house. However, I rarely see it lol. The price, location, & the inside of the house is far more important to me.
In the end, it is all about priorities.
And actually there IS one more thing…probably the most important thing. However intangible it is, it is VERY important. That is HOW YOU FEEL when you’re in the house. You know that feeling you have when you instantly just feel “good”. You can’t put your finger on why, it just feels right. This is of course AFTER you have already figured out all of the above items. It can & will only happen after you have stepped in “the one”.
Wishing you the best of luck & happy house-hunting! Feel free to get in touch with me if you have any questions! If you’re looking for a house in Las Vegas, I am a licensed real-estate agent, & would be privileged to be a part of your journey!
