A NOTE ABOUT PETS Consider your pets when home-shopping. Homebuyers who are pet owners have special requirements they must meet for their pets. A third (33%) of millennial-aged Americans (ages 18 to 36) who purchased their first home say the
desire to have a better space or yard for a dog influenced their decision to purchase their first home, according to a survey conducted online by Harris Poll on behalf of SunTrust Mortgage. Dogs ranked among the top three motivators for first-time home purchasers and were cited by more millennials than marriage/upcoming marriage (25%), or the birth/expected birth of a child (19%). It is essential that the neighborhood in which you are going to buy a house have no restrictions on pets. Do you raise American Staffordshire Terriers?There are cities that ban this breed— they’re better known as pit bulls. Goats? Vietnamese pigs? Do you love to always have fresh eggs from your own chickens? Include your animals in location planning. Some pet owners prioritize wood or other durable flooring, not wanting to risk pet damage or odors that might be a greater risk with carpeting. A fenced backyard of appropriate size is on the needs list for many pet-owning house buyers. Consider the arrangement of rooms and the structure of the house as well to make sure it is suitable for your pets. Traffic in the area may be another checklist item. Pet services such as veterinary, grooming, and exercising should be conveniently accessible nearby. LOCATION, LOCATION, LOCATION! You must make sure to be in a neighborhood that offers the closest possible match to the kind of lifestyle that you want. Trulia recently conducted a survey with Harris Interactive, and the real-estate site found 84% of Americans said the neighborhood would be equally important or even more important than the house itself if they were searching for a new home.
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