Th e point here is that every buyer’s home-search process is diff erent. What happens or works for one buyer won’t necessarily be the case for another. Don’t feel pressure because of something that worked out for someone you know. Purchasing a home is likely going to be the largest fin ancial investment you will make in your lifetime. Don’t settle, don’t make a hasty decision based on pressure or weariness, and de fin itely don’t choose a home that you’re not 100% sure about or comfortable with, because you’ll be paying that thing o ff f or the next 20 or 30 years. So where do you start? MAKE A LIST So you have an idea of what your dream house would be like, but this impression in your mind of what your new home will look like — or, to be more precise — of what you hope your new home will look like, will be much clearer and more useful if you actually put pen to paper and make a complete checklist of both your needs and your wants. It’s a good idea to start from the outside in, instead of inside out. Th is would mean considering location fir st. Location could be a need vs. a want. For example, if you got a promotion that requires you to move out of the city, then location is top priority and your highest need. But if you would like to stay in your area of your city, then location becomes closer to a “want” — such as a preferred neighborhood for its spe cifi c amenities. Or for parents with young children or adult children with elderly parents, or broken families, location would be a need. It would be more of a desire if those factors don’t apply. Here’s another example of how location applies: Let’s say you fall head over heels in love with a certain home, but it’s on a busy, loud, or annoyingly un fin ished road; you might eventually regret your 46
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