First Things First

According to many psychologists, moving is one of the most stressful events that can happen throughout one's life. Not only does it disrupt your life, but it disrupts your families and friends lives - especially if you are moving far away. Buying or selling a house can be a very complicated event and must not be taken lightly.

One of the first things that you must ask yourself is where do I want to live. Many times, the buyer has not fully decided where he and his family will be comfortable. As a realtor, I can tell you numerous stories about driving around showing houses all over the place. One thing that I suggest to any buyer is to drive around and look at the neighborhoods that you may be willing to consider. You may find that the property you like may not be exactly where you need to be. Several questions to consider when making a decision include:

• Do I want to live near my family? Is it important that I am close by to help out my parents or in-laws?
• What size of a house do I need? Should it be a three-bedroom and two-bath house or will a two bedroom house fit into future plans?
• Do I want to live in a Subdivision, or do I want to be away from everything?
• How far from work should I be? How long will it take to commute and how much will it cost to drive back and forth?
• What if I am transferred or decide I want to move, how easy will it be to resale this house?

I am sure that before you decide on a house, you will have many more questions that you must answer before making a final decision. Looking at property for sale is a fun thing to do. But before you contact a real estate agent, you should decide exactly what you are looking for. You probably won't get everything that you want; there is no perfect house, but your agent can help to narrow down the listings to a few that you may be interested in pursuing.