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When Looking At Homes, Consult A Checklist

According to experts, now is a great time to look into buying your first home! Mortgage rates are at an all time low, and the collapse in the housing market means that there are a huge variety of homes in every price range to choose from: and nearly all of them have eager sellers who are willing to negotiate.

For first time home buyers, the task of selecting just the right house can seem especially daunting. Having a checklist with you will help you to sort out one home from another and determine which one has the qualities that are the most important to you. Print out a separate list for each home instead of trying to fit them all on one page, and then keep a bunch of lists in your car so that they will be accessible at a moment's notice.

When creating the template for your checklist, you will want to include:

-- The location and price of the house as well as the date you saw it. Listing the viewing date will help trigger your memory when you're trying to recall what the house looked like later.

-- How much are the property taxes?

-- What is the style of the house: is it a rambler, split-level, two story, etc? How many rooms, bedrooms, baths and half baths does it have?

-- What color are the walls? Will the house need a lot of cosmetic updating? You can always tell a house that has been somewhat "beaten up:" it will have scarred doorframes and marks on the walls. If the house has these kinds of issues, it may give you wiggle room to negotiate on price.

--The kitchen is one of the most important rooms in the house. Are the appliances in good condition? Is the stove electric or gas? How are the flooring and countertops? Will there be adequate cupboard space? Is there plenty of room for eat-in dining?

-- How is the closet space and does it have extra room for storage? For practical reasons, this is one of the most important features in a home. Walls can be painted and wallpaper replaced, but it's hard to add on additional storage.

If you like to keep a lot of holiday decorations, boxes of books, and other mementos, you may want to look for a house with an attic or a partially unfinished basement to accommodate your storage needs. The garage should be for the cars and bicycles, not for storage.

-- Does it have a garage and if so, how many cars? Does it have a covered carport?

-- What size lot does it sit on? Is the yard landscaped? Is it a new enough house that you will have to foot the expense for sod and flower beds? Or is it an older home with older landscaping that will require lots of updating? Is it fully fenced? If you have pets or children, this last item may be of particular importance to you.

-- Check out all of the vital systems: make sure there are adequate heating and cooling systems and that they are all in working order. Find out how old the furnace and hot water heaters are. What are the average monthly utility costs?

-- Do a thorough check of the neighborhood, looking for important things such as the type of traffic on the street, whether or not the neighbors keep their properties in good condition, the quality of the schools, and convenient accessibility to stores.

These are just some basics: you will want to add more as you see fit. Happy house hunting!

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