QUALIFYING YOURSELF BEFORE DECIDING TO LOOK FOR A NEW RESIDENCE!

You’ve  been interested in buying a new residence for quite some time now and have finally decided to begin your search and viewing process.  It’s very common for people to have high expectations out of a new home and this is a good thing.  However, just like with buying anything your expectations may not match what is actually out there in the marketplace.  It is with this in mind that you should truly right down by yourself or with your partner what you are looking for in a new home.  You may be surprised that your views are similar, different, or on two very different planets.  This is why it is very important to sit down and discuss what you are looking for in a new residence before you get started looking for one.  We suggest that you use the following categories to define the qualities you are looking for:
1.   Location
2.  Apartment or House
3.  Size and Layout
4.  Budget
It is with these 4 categories that you can truly determine what your next steps are going to be.
 
Location is one of the most important aspects of the search and can sometimes be differing factor in peoples minds.  Questions you should be asking yourself while defining a location:
Do I/We need to be located near our places of work or is it more important to be near the children’s school and extracurricular activities?
How important is it to be near public transportation?
What are the most important services we need to access quickly: grocery, entertainment, sports facilities?
Do we know where we would like our children to go to school?
Are we truly interested in city or country life?
If country life, how far are you willing to be from the centre of the city?
Apartment or House:  This may seem obvious, but unfortunately it is not.  Many times it occurs that once the Location is chosen a search should be done to find out if houses or apartments are even available in the location you would like to live in.  Apartments and houses are two very distinct dwellings offering many different types of lifestyles and in most locations.  When asking yourself about this choice you should be focused on the following questions:
Is it important for me to have a garden for outdoor life and gardening?  A play place for the children?
Are there apartments in the locality that offer gardens  and city life alike?
Can a house meet my proximity needs to the office, the shopping venues, and sports venues or areas for practice.
How far am I willing to commute to achieve the pefect garden?
Which neighbohoods have I/we identified that meet the apartment category and vice versa?
Have I ever lived in an apartment or a house and If I haven’t than how do I know that I will that particular lifestyle?
Size and Layout are quintessential in terms of choosing your new space.  So many times people get caught up with how big the living space is and do not focus on what their actual functional needs are.  We have seen many properties that are absolutely huge in terms of m2, but offer no functionality.  Many times in larger homes or apartments the living areas are so big that it is hard to decide how to use them.  Whereas,  we’ve seen some great efficient use of space at below 120m2 with three proper bedrooms and built for modern life and entertainment.  Let”s face it, you don’t want to be cramped into a small space that you don’t like, but you also don’t want to be living in an apartment or home the size of gymnasium that offers no comfortable  or functional space.
Are the types of sizes and layouts in my focus area?
BUDGET
A budget should be a number in which you feel comfortable in spending over the next great period of time.  You must be quite serious here as sometimes we have to learn the hard way that just because we want something or another as according to our choices from the above, but it doesn’t necessarily mean that one can afford it.
It is very important to discuss all of the above with a professional agent prior to beginning any type search for a new residence.  A professional agent can guide you through the hard parts, understand what is actually available on the market and try to help you find you a residence that compromisies your needs and desires vs. reality and what’s actually on the market place.
These are some of the many questions you should be asking prioer to  a home search.
At Mantaren Properties, we are more to sit down with you and go over your expectations, qualifications, and build a search list that fits in with your needs and your budgets.
Send us an email at info@prague-properties.com