Choosing first home

firsthome2020

Hello,
I’m a first time buyer and really struggling to choose a house. I had a lot of viewings prior to lockdown, none of which I made an offer on. I’m quite flexible on the area I live but I’m wondering how others chose their first home. What were the non negotiables? What did you compromise on? How did you know it was ‘the one’? Ideally I don’t want to move for a long long time so I want something I’m completely happy on but feel this is making me too picky! I’m purchasing on my own so don’t have anyone else to consider but would be interested in hearing others experiences.

Thanks! 

natasha22

Honestly i made a big list of what we classed as essential then desirable from a new home. It obviously depends on budgets as for example ive seen other threads to this (on other forums) pull up lists of essentials like detached etc that simply wouldnt be possible on our budget. We knew some our non-negotiable points from living in rented (eg our garden is decked so we knew we didnt want a decked garden), and we thought about it in terms of lifestyle we were looking for. 

Area for us was a big deal, both the commute times and general feel. As a woman who walks the dog late at night, i want to feel safe. We did a lot of driving by properties to begin with to figure out what areas we wanted to live in. 

Equally we want a garden, doesnt have to be fancy and we are willing to put work into it but it has to have the ability to be turfed (where i live theres a lot of courtyard/non existant gardens). This means we can continue to have dogs in the future and expand our number of pets. Too much of a comprimise on the garden for us means that we wouldnt be able to have the pets and lifestyle we want
Other essential for us is reasonable parking. Dont mind if its not a drive, as long as the parking is reliable and safe. 

Most of ours is about potential, eg we dont need to have a down stairs toilet but its important for us that we have the option to create one later (disabled dad), same with having a bath (i wouldnt want to commit to living longterm in a house where a bath wasnt possible)

As a family it was also important we had some space for a dining table. We want space to host, and have sunday dinners!

Most of the rest of ours is desirables. We are flexible to a degree on bedroom numbers, style of house, no of bathrooms etc

Viewing lots of houses for us was the main way in which we were able to understand what we needed. We've found houses that were great but missing an element which confirmed to us that the element was essential. We knew when we looked at a few what we didnt want to compromise on

Squirrelz92

For me it was all about the space. I needed a big garden with 2 children of my own and my partner having his 2 children on a weekend. That plus two dogs! I also needed parking. There was no way in hell I was buying my first house that didn't have a driveway. I was fairly flexible with the layout of the houses I went to look at as rooms can of course be changed. I viewed a good few and I always got that instant 'definitely not' feeling in my stomach. I was almost not even interested in viewing the upstairs simply because the house just didn't feel right to me. The house I am currently in the middle of purchasing however changed that. It has two extensions which ticked a big bonus box! However, its flaw are being a terraced with no side access... it is also in serious need of modernisation. Everything needs ripping out and replacing bar the new boiler. It's often hard to see past someone else's mess or poor state of property, but it always helps to know what to look out for problem wise eg. damp, dry rot, cracks in the brickwork. Originally I was adamant that I wouldn't touch a terraced house.... a year later and here I am, about to exchange on one! 

Wish you the very best of luck in finding your first home! Trust your gut. You will just know if it's a match for you! 

NewShadow

I took a similar approach - I thought about the things in my current/previous house that actively negatively impacted on my quality of life and worked from there to figure out what I wanted in a new home in order of personal priority: 

• Proximity to work
• A minimum of four 'decent size' rooms (upstairs or downstairs) which aren't the kitchen/bathroom
• Decent sized kitchen + somewhere to actually sit and eat (either in the kitchen or downstairs)
  
• Somewhere to dry clothes that isn't the middle of the lounge
• Space for a full size fridge and separate freezer in kitchen or undercounter with freezer in utility space 
• Accessible storage for things like coats/ hoover/ Christmas decorations  
• GCH/double glazing - though not a deal breaker if cheap enough
• A 'real' solid/multi fuel fire or a chimney which can convert back
• Would vaguely like wet room for washing machine/drying
• Would vaguely like space for a dishwasher
• Garden vs porch/sunroom/space for a cat run

Obviously this assumes it's a home, not an investment  

kasqueak

It’s a very personal and individual decision on what’s important to you in a home. Make a list of what you want. What are “must haves” and what are “would likes if possible” (as some things you might have to compromise). 

So for us when we bought first place the must haves were - being walking distance to a train line (for commuting to work), having a dedicated parking space, and also somewhere that didn’t need anything more than just cosmetic work. We didn’t want places that needed a heap of plastering, rendering etc. 

eidand

I have a list of must haves.
Every house i view i make a list of pros and cons. None are perfect, but you need to decide what's important to you and cannot compromise on.

blue_max_3

With Rightmove et al, it has never been easier to provisionally make a list of properties you're interested in.
Do you like modern or period? Well established areas, or modern estates?
Know your area! I know every street in my area and they are all different in some way. Some overlooking the hustle and bustle of the high street, others more residential and quieter.
Flat, terraced, semi or detached. Would you rather have larger rooms of a flat, or more, smaller rooms of a terraced?
Budget. Always look a little above to see if the selection is more to your liking. 
Prospects. Might your job take you away. Are you in a secure job with good prospect of increasing salary. Are you open to a relationship at some point?
Energy efficient or lifestyle?
Only when you've considered all these things, can you step into a place and just know.

MovingForwards

I'm disabled and struggle to walk, knew roughly what I could borrow, but set my own budget of 3x my wages for my mortgage loan as I didn't want to borrow the maximum.

My must have list was water or mountain view, garden, 2 bedrooms, walking distance to a train station, shower or wet room, shops within walking distance, bus routes to get me to other areas, not an ex-council property (my lender wanted 20% deposit for them, which I couldn't realistically save), within 90 minutes of work.

My would be nice list was top floor flat, bungalow, house, private garden, balcony, things to see and do in the area, within 60 minutes of work.

My I can live without list was drive / parking space (even though I have a car), 3 bedrooms.

My didn't want list was residential area.

I viewed one 3 bed maisonette, great for the space it had, massively overpriced for the work it needed, not including modernising it and it was in a residential area (that's where the 'didn't want list' came about).

I kept looking at one flat and fell in love with it just from the photos, then Google mapped it, a few months later it was still on the market and I was in a position to apply for a mortgage. I arranged a viewing, pulled up opposite and smiled, viewed it and had to contain my excitement, went into the garden and nearly burst. Purchase was agreed a few hours later.

2 bed flat, middle floor, private garden (very unusual up here), mountain and water views, train station just down the road, bus stops and shops a few minutes away, shower room, about 110 years old, surrounded by history and about 45 minutes to work via public transport.

Coming up to 2 months in my home, absolutely no regrets as I knew from the photos I wanted it. 

blue_max_3

MovingForwards said:

I'm disabled and struggle to walk, knew roughly what I could borrow, but set my own budget of 3x my wages for my mortgage loan as I didn't want to borrow the maximum.

My must have list was water or mountain view, garden, 2 bedrooms, walking distance to a train station, shower or wet room, shops within walking distance, bus routes to get me to other areas, not an ex-council property (my lender wanted 20% deposit for them, which I couldn't realistically save), within 90 minutes of work.

My would be nice list was top floor flat, bungalow, house, private garden, balcony, things to see and do in the area, within 60 minutes of work.

My I can live without list was drive / parking space (even though I have a car), 3 bedrooms.

My didn't want list was residential area.

I viewed one 3 bed maisonette, great for the space it had, massively overpriced for the work it needed, not including modernising it and it was in a residential area (that's where the 'didn't want list' came about).

I kept looking at one flat and fell in love with it just from the photos, then Google mapped it, a few months later it was still on the market and I was in a position to apply for a mortgage. I arranged a viewing, pulled up opposite and smiled, viewed it and had to contain my excitement, went into the garden and nearly burst. Purchase was agreed a few hours later.

2 bed flat, middle floor, private garden (very unusual up here), mountain and water views, train station just down the road, bus stops and shops a few minutes away, shower room, about 110 years old, surrounded by history and about 45 minutes to work via public transport.

Coming up to 2 months in my home, absolutely no regrets as I knew from the photos I wanted it. 

Where is that? Sounds idylic!

MovingForwards

@blue_max_3 Scotland 😁

blue_max_3

MovingForwards said:

@blue_max_3 Scotland 😁

So sorry 
You had me going there!