As a buyer sometimes we so want to try before we buy. And some products do come with that kind of an offer.
Houses are not one of those products. Except for one long gone HGTV show based on this very premise.
More important than the house is the neighborhood. You can change the house, but you can get stuck with a location you really can't stand.
Let me share with you how my husband I have always bought our 'neighborhood' before we allowed ourselves to fall in love with a house.
The age of the homes dictate the search in an area. Once the area is chosen and a house identified we now start the 'showings'.
Don't misunderstand this is not yet about the house, but the neighbors and how they live in there homes. Are they well maintained? Are there grease spots on the driveways and on the street in front of any homes?
Sound silly??? If you can't stand it now you can't change it latter!
How does the neighborhood look when everyone is home and on the weekends.
We have even returned at 10pm and taken a walk in a neighborhood. Do you feel safe there not matter the time of day or night?
One lovely tree-lined neighborhood that was so desirable during the day had whole different vibe at night!
The streets were lined with cars, on top of these car were teenagers with the music so loud.
House and neighborhood no longer on the list we moved on to area #2.
We have never gone so far as to interview the neighbors but we always drop by our immediate neighbors with a treat as soon as we move in, just a "Hi there nice to meet you" can go a long way in establishing good relations and make problems easier to overcome latter on.
Before you fall in love with a house make sure you love your neighborhood.
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