Your Lifestyle
So, you've decided you want to own a home. It's a popular dream. For most people, with the right planning, it can become reality.


What Does Your Future Lifestyle Hold?
How many bedrooms will you one day require? Your preschoolers will be teens some day. Are you planning to stay in your home that long? Perhaps your teens are ready to move out on their own. What will you do with all the extra space? When you're thinking about accommodating your family's needs, think of things like parking. How many cars will require space? You'll also want to consider proximity to -- and the reputation of -- schools in the area.


How is your work situation? These days people tend to change jobs frequently, and sometimes the best way to get a promotion is to move to another company. If you might be transferred, will you be able to sell quickly? Keeping work in mind, how long do you want to spend commuting? Do you drive or rely on public transportation?


As you can see, you will want to give some thought to how long you intend to stay in your home. It may be difficult to answer before you've even found your home, but if it's your first home give some thought to the resale value when it is time to upgrade. On the other hand, if you're planning to stay in your home for a long time, consider your future needs and purchase a home that will accommodate them.

Do You Live a Maintenance-Averse Lifestyle?
Take a look at the garden. If you don't enjoy cutting grass, then an expansive lawn may not fit into your lifestyle. You can also evaluate the possibility of future maintenance and repairs based on the age of the house. If you don't like the idea of major renovations, a newer home may be your best option.

Is Your Lifestyle More Geared to a Fixer-Upper Fantasy?
Many first time buyers have them. It goes something like this: You find a big home in a great neighborhood that's well below what you'd expect to pay for that house in that neighborhood. You see a couple of coats of paint, new broadloom, a few repairs and voilà, a dream home without the nightmare price.

Before you jump headlong into this 'once-in-a-lifetime opportunity' consider how you'll do all of the work. Will it be weeknights after a long day at the office, or will you hire someone? Are you ready to live in a dusty mess as you renovate? Do a realistic assessment of the job at hand and be sure to have the house inspected. The last thing you want is a bargain home that turns into a money pit. You're far better to find a house that costs a little more each month but doesn't need much work than to buy a fixer-upper that eats up hundreds of dollars each month. For example, lets say you could buy a really nice house with minimal work required for $10,000 more than a fixer upper. At today's mortgage rates, assuming you could stay within your monthly budget, that really nice home would cost you only about $65 per month more than the fixer-upper. If you buy the fixer-upper, you'll be spending a lot more than $65 each month to whip it into shape, as well as the strain your family will go through living in an unfinished home.

Why is Location Important?
Of course, the first step in deciding on a new home is your lifestyle at present and how your lifestyle will change over the next few years. Are you active in sports? If so, a location with a nearby recreational facility would be ideal. Are you a nature lover? Then perhaps an area with parks and walking trails would suit you. Think about yourself and your family and decide what you enjoy doing and what type of lifestyle you would enjoy in your new home.

Which neighborhood is Right for You?
Your ideal home may not be ideal anymore if it's downwind from the garbage dump, or if your home is right next to a freeway overpass. Think about the view. Will you like what you see every time you look out your windows? Selecting where you want to live is as important as deciding what type of dwelling you'd like to live in.

Consider how far your selected neighborhood is from where you work, how far you're willing to commute and your lifestyle. You'll also think about schools if you have, or are planning to have, children. And what about medical facilities, places of worship, public transportation and recreation?

If you're contemplating the move to an unfamiliar neighborhood, take the time to go exploring. Walk around, drive around, get a feel for the distance to the nearest convenience store, the commute. Make some notes. Take the neighborhood tour at different times of day.

What Can I Afford?
There are two types of costs in buying a home -- the initial amount you will need for your purchase and the ongoing costs of paying back your mortgage along with monthly operating costs. The largest one-time cost is the down payment. It usually represents 5-10% of the total price of the property.

Typical One-time Expenses:

• Mortgage application and appraisal fee
• Property inspection (optional), due at time of inspection
• Legal fees, due at the time of closing
• Legal disbursements, due at the time of closing
• Property survey (sometimes provided by seller), due at the time of closing
• Land transfer, deed tax or property purchase tax, due at the time of closing.
• Mortgage interest adjustment (if applicable), due at the time of closing
• Home and property insurance, at closing and ongoing
• Moving expenses, due on the date of move

Typical Monthly Expenses:

• Mortgage payments
• Maintenance
• Property and content insurance
• Property taxes
• Utilities