Look beyond the basic cosmetics and keep an open mind! Try to look past the shag carpet and floral wallpaper that still remains from the 70’s. Try not to get turned off by appearance of the decor and instead look into the roots and bones of the house. Is the foundation solid? Do you like the floor plan and is it unique or completely common for that neighborhood? You will likely change the cosmetics of any house, so don’t get too hung up on it, especially walls and floors which many people will update and personalize into their own style anyway.
Pay attention to the big ticket items. Things like roof, windows, furnace/boiler, hot water heater, electrical panel, etc. What condition are they in? When were they last updated? If they need to be updated, keep that in mind for your overall costs and budget. If they have been recently updated, consider that an attractive bonus to the property.
Take notes. Especially if you are viewing several different houses back to back in one day, write things down as you leave each one because after a couple, they will start to blend together. Take notes on condition of big ticket items. Jot down questions that you would like to follow-up on. List the positives and the negatives that came to mind as you walked through.
Use Google maps as a first level sort. Before you even request a showing, I suggest you take a look at the aerial and street views of the property online. Often times deal breakers are detected that you didn’t realize from the listing information or photos. Perhaps there is a busy business that borders the property, maybe it backs up to a highway…any number of things that are just not appealing to you or aligned with your needs. I once showed a house where the back side of the house was literally about 20 feet away from a fast food drive thru. I can only imagine hearing orders being repeated over that loud speaker till 4am every night.
Stalk the house and neighborhood at various times of day. As much as I am passionately working to look out for my clients, there are some things that I am professionally and ethically not at liberty to discuss, including “opinions” about neighborhoods. That is why I always encourage my buyers to do their own homework in that regard, including visiting neighborhoods at different times of the day and striking up conversations with neighbors if you see them out and about. Residents can be a wealth of all kinds of information, including neighborhood gossip at times.
