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Old 04-06-2007, 01:06 PM
 
262 posts, read 1,230,517 times
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When I'm house hunting I always go with my feelings. Even if the house has everything we want, if I don't get a good feeling about it, I won't consider it.

Anyone else work this way?
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Old 04-06-2007, 08:27 PM
 
Location: Prospect, KY
5,284 posts, read 20,012,371 times
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Certainly emotions are involved when you go to choose a new house - sometimes it can be the smallest thing....a house that isn't perfect but has a wonderful stained glass window in the kitchen and nice crown molding for instance. But in the long run, I am very practical when it comes to buying a new home....things have to be in good repair or need minimal remodeling, the traffic patterns have to flow or at least hold the potential to flow well, bad remodels negate any positive emotion I might have felt, rooms and hallways need to be fairly large, the neighborhood needs to be quiet and the homes therein well kept....emotion only goes so far for me when contemplating making a big purchase like buying a house.
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Old 04-06-2007, 08:53 PM
 
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This definitely relates to a thread I started this past week about logic vs emotion when house-hunting.

I think it depends tremendously on how much of a factor other things (like finances, or the needs and desires of other people in the family, or job relocation pressures perhaps) are in each person's situation.

I just recently went through a situation similar to nymom's, where I saw a house that had four of the major practical (price, taxes, neighborhood, property size) things I am looking for, but I could not (despite trying oh so very very hard!) convince myself that it "felt" right ..... so after two weeks of soul-searching, list-making and agonizing, I ultimately decided to pass. I am however very aware that six months or a year from now, if I have not found anything else that comes close in practicality PLUS feels right emotionally, I may be kicking myself repeatedly in the butt for making the decision that I did.

I am currently looking for my "spend the rest of my life in it" house, so the pressure to make the right decision this time is greater than I have ever felt when house-hunting before.
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Old 04-06-2007, 09:54 PM
 
Location: Prospect, KY
5,284 posts, read 20,012,371 times
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Windflower - we are in the same position - or at least will be a year from now....we want to make the right decision - so many factors involved. My biggest concern is that, although we are healthy and active now, that 20 years from now, things might be different and how will our next house accommodate our limitations? Will the house adapt to us or will we have to adapt to the house?
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Old 04-07-2007, 07:28 AM
 
5,019 posts, read 14,091,323 times
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I have to admit, when it comes to real estate I'm an impulse shopper, i.e. I have to fall in love with the place.

I'm a visual person, so the quality of the light has to be "just right" or it's a no-deal. I'm willing to put up with certain defects (creaky floors, drafty windows) for charm. I'm definitely all about the charm.
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Old 04-07-2007, 07:42 AM
 
192 posts, read 863,862 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Cattknap View Post
Windflower - we are in the same position - or at least will be a year from now....we want to make the right decision - so many factors involved. My biggest concern is that, although we are healthy and active now, that 20 years from now, things might be different and how will our next house accommodate our limitations? Will the house adapt to us or will we have to adapt to the house?
I've adopted the philosophy of "expect the best but prepare for the worst" in this situation. Health situations can change when you least expect it. When I bought my current house five years ago, I'd never had a knee or back problem in my life (I was 53 then). Two years ago I developed a chronic back problem, and a year ago I injured my knee which is now easily aggravated and will never be "right" again. Trouble is, my current house is a large Colonial and when (especially) my knee is acting up, those stairs are pure hell. I may never end up needing a walker or wheelchair but then again, I very well might. Obviously, keeping a 2-story house for the long term would be foolish. Some friends have said "Why not just stay there until you have to move?" Well, first of all I don't want to have to deal with house-hunting, moving, or renovating at the age of 70-something or 80-something! It's enough aggravation when one is in their 40s or 50s.

I also have several friends who are in the midst of a huge brouhaha with an elderly parent whose house is now causing problems for their physical limitations (or vice versa) but they refuse to move. The kids can't or don't want to move in with the parents; live-in help is not financially do-able; the parent refuses to move house or go into a care facility. That's a situation I just don't want to find myself in, ever; and the only way to avoid it is to find a house that will be as easy for me to live alone in when I'm 90 and feeble as it is when I'm 60 and relatively healthy. To me that means having everything on one floor, handicap accessible, level plot topography, no high-maintenance materials, and everything reachable and easy to clean.
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Old 04-07-2007, 07:48 AM
 
Location: Springfield, Missouri
2,815 posts, read 12,968,525 times
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I balance emotion with price, location, and then I project myself as a seller in five years and think to myself.."Are there any defects in this house that would make it difficult to sell even if I'm willing to put up with them?". If the answer is yes, then no matter how much I like the house, I won't buy it.
It has to capture my imagination, make me visualize living there with pleasure, and be in a condition that I can easily see it selling in the future - even if I never move.
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Old 04-07-2007, 09:30 AM
 
Location: Vero Beach, Fl
2,976 posts, read 13,351,585 times
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When I purchase a home everything gets factored in. A bit of gut and thoroughly researching the home and neighborhood. In fact, when we had our home inspected (company was recommended by the realtor), I went out and hired my own inspector to re-inspect the house.
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