How long do you want to live in your house? You are just thinking about buying a house. Do you really need to start thinking about selling the home you haven’t even bought yet? Well, probably. In order to buy the right home for you, you need to answer the question “how long do I want to live here?”
Home buyers need to be realistic about how long you plan to live in one house. If you plan to live in the home for 10 years, you may be able to predict the home that will accommodate your needs.
The three most common reasons to move are: “moving up”, family, and work.
According to the Current Population Survey, the number one reason for a move is housing: moving to a better home in a better neighborhood. The second most popular was family related, which accounts for about one quarter of moves. Under 1/5 of moves were work related.
How will these factors be changing in your life? How will they impact your ideal home? Talk about your future with your exclusive buyers agent so that you can find the right home.
Exclusive Buyers Agents recommend that home buyers think about the future when buying a home.
* Are you looking for a 3-5 year home? Are you looking for a 10 year home? A 30 year? More? Less than a year? * Do you expect changes in the size of your family in this time period? Having children or more kids? Kids moving out? Family members moving in? Getting married? Getting divorced? * Are your needs going to outgrow your house? Will a higher family income entice you to move up? Or, will a lower family income require you to move down? * Is there a possibility that you will be relocated by your company?
These lifestyle changes will impact the location of your home, the size of your home, the floor plan, and of course, the price, suggests our exclusive buyers agents. For example, if you have a young child and plan to stay in the home for a few years, you may need to consider the schools that are nearby.
Certainly, life can take unexpected turns. But, the more honest you can be with your exclusive buyers agent about how long you want to live in a home and what your needs will be during that time period, the more likely you are to find the perfect home for you.
Avoid Selling During a Bad Time
Aside from the benefit of having your home meet your needs, you can avoid selling at a bad time. You will often hear about “buyer’s markets” and “seller’s markets” in the news. The market conditions can have an enormous impact on the financial gain or loss when you sell your home. Unfortunately, it’s difficult to predict when the market will become a seller’s market and how long that will last.
Agents who have seen many booms and busts recommend that historically, once the market goes down, it has gone up higher than the one before. Living in your home for a few extra years before a move can allow you to sell at the right time, and make some money.
Careful planning about your future will allow greater flexibility when it comes time to sell.
Home buyers can find additional resources or connect with exclusive buyers agents at the Colorado Exclusive Buyers Agent Association site: http://homebuyerscolorado.org.
|
|