Finding Your Dream Home
Though everyone has a dream home in mind, very few of us actually get to live in that dream home. The harsh reality-check comes in the form of each person’s budgetary constraints. Nonetheless, having a clear picture of your dream home will allow you prioritize, manage tradeoffs, and get as close to your dream as possible.
Understanding home types
There are lots of home styles in this country. We’ve documented some of the most popular ones below. A quick Internet search should provide you with more information and even pictures. You are obviously constrained by the type of housing that’s available in your part of the country. Some of the most common home types include:
- Art Deco
- Cape Cod
- Colonial
- Craftsman
- Georgian
- Gothic
- Greek
- Modern
- Mountain
- Prairie
- Pueblo
- Queen Ann
- Ranch
- Spanish
- Swiss Cottage
- Timber-Frame
- Tudor
- Victorian
There are certainly plenty of styles beyond these, so local research may help identify them. Some of these style you may flat-out dislike. If so, and if there are other styles available in your desired neighborhood, you might consider scratching some off the list.
What characteristics are you looking for in a home?
No matter how small, write down every thought you have about a dream home. How many levels, how many rooms – bedrooms, bathrooms, etc.? What special rooms are you looking for – family room, office, guest room, gourmet kitchen, wine cellar, home theatre? What outdoor amenities are you looking for – yard, deck, patio, pool, guest house? Also, write down all the other features you want in a home – air conditioning, garage, closet space and storage, etc.
Have your spouse, children, and even other family members and friends contribute to this list. Work with your family to prioritize this list to come up with the top things that have to be in that home.
What about the neighborhood?
Create the same prioritized list for the characteristics you are looking for outside of the home. What about community features, like schools, parks, playgrounds, libraries and hospitals? What about shopping and dining? What about the neighborhood type – urban, suburban or rural?
Also consider the people you’d like to live close to. Do you have school-age children that need friends? Are you a retiree that likes peace and quiet?
Add all the neighborhood features important to you to that same prioritized list that you created for the home. By now you should have a pretty big list. Start stack ranking based on importance. For example, what is more important – your wine cellar or a quiet suburban neighborhood? Though they don’t appear to be related, it is helpful to consider which one is ultimately more important to you.
Are you willing to take a diamond in the rough?
You may have heard the expression, “the home has good bones.” It is usually said when the potential is there, but the house may need a major or minor remodel for it to live up to its potential.
Additionally, the house may have some room for growth, and an addition will allow you to mold the house into your dream home. This is often a great option for people buying into a cheaper home, and spending money a few years later to build out that dream. There are two important considerations to make this possible – is there enough land to support an addition, or does the house itself allow an addition through another floor. If the latter is your strategy, you may need an engineer to determine whether the foundation could support a second floor. In either case, additions or remodels could be expensive, so it is a good idea to consult professionals before deciding to rebuild your house into the dream home.
Finally, even if your house doesn’t need a major addition or remodel, consider small improvements that would bring it to the “dream” level – can you add air conditioning? Is there room in the basement for the wine cellar? Most of the time, the dream will come out over time through your creativity and hard work.