Everyone has their own idea of the perfect home. Although curb appeal and artful interior design always attract a lot of looky-loos, they are not the primary reasons people buy homes for sale. Beyond the aesthetic concerns, there are practical matters that must be considered.
Table of Contents
The Location
We’ve all heard that the three most important things about homes for sale are location, location, location. For the real estate wildcatter, that advice can be used to target properties in hot markets. But for the average shopper, location is more personal. In other words, it’s all about what matters to you! For one buyer, proximity to work may be the most pressing concern, while another might want a property that is off the beaten path. In most cases, however, where a home is situated in a specific neighborhood is the key to finding a great location.
The Neighborhood
What good is having a great location if you don’t like the neighborhood the house is located in? That said, it’s near impossible to learn everything you need to know about a neighborhood without actually living there. What you can do, however, is make a determination based on what you can see. Generally speaking, a nice neighborhood will have clean yards, safe streets, and maybe even a few kids playing outdoors. Many shoppers also pay attention to the other houses in the area. More often than not, they prefer them to be consistent in size and exterior features.
Street Parking
Even in the suburbs, local rules and regulations may prohibit homeowners from parking on the street. This can be a problem for large families who have more cars than they can fit in their driveways. As you might imagine, lack of street parking is often a major issue in cities and downtown areas. It can cost homeowners hundreds, even thousands of dollars a month to keep their cars in a nearby garage. That is why homes with available parking can fetch a much higher price than those that do not.
The Driveway
One of the reasons street parking is such a big issue is that there are costs and benefits of having a big driveway. The benefits are that you will be able to fit more cars in them and enjoy more outdoor activities on them, such as driveway basketball. The drawback is that they are far more expensive and time-consuming to maintain. For example, a large driveway can take a lot longer to shovel after a massive snowstorm than a shorter, narrower one.
Lot Grade
Houses on steep lots are generally less expensive because they have less usable space. It is also more costly to build an addition, a pool, even a deck on a steep, uneven yard. For these reasons, the lot grade is often more important than its size.