What are you looking for when searching for your next home?

How many times when looking for real estate have you heard “Location Location Location”!  Many home buyers come with a list of must haves and a wish list; others come focused on location and size.  Over the years, some clients have brought a variety of search criteria to the process. It’s always interesting to see what concerns clients have and if these concerns are helpful to keep in mind for other buyers.

Some clients want no noise.

They want their new home to be free from highway noise and from road noise.  These are buyers who want a peaceful setting in a town, rather than a city.  On the flip side, other clients have sought the opposite and have asked that their home search only include houses that are in a city, preferably convenient to all city amenities and none of that “Green Acres” peace and quiet!  The noise factor became even more intense when train noise was introduced.  One client considered train noise to be acceptable within the realm of a peaceful setting.  Another client would have preferred to be much closer to I95, as long as they couldn’t hear the train! Longtime residents of Madison once told me that if you can’t hear the train, I95 or the fire whistle, you live too far north!  It’s all a matter of perspective, I guess!

One of my favorite clients was very specific with their request that we find a house located in a neighborhood with convenient access to I95.  One had a long highway commute and wanted to get off the thruway and know they’d be home in a few minutes.  Turns out we found them the perfect house so that when they are exiting I95, they shift from work mode to family mode.

A significant number of clients have a “no sump pump” rule when shopping for a house

Unfortunately, it’s not a line item in the MLS, so often we’re in a house where they see potential after viewing the first floor and then a trip to the basement rules the house out by the presence of a sump pump.  Sometimes the pump is there as a precaution and you can see it’s dry or full of cobwebs, but nonetheless, no sump pump means exactly that!

No Farm Animals!

Recently, I thought I’d found the perfect home for clients that was set in walk to beach, town and train location.  They loved the photos and location and we were excited for the showing.  When we pulled onto the street, I heard them gasp because the neighboring house was advertising “eggs for sale” and their child had a fear of chickens.  Suffice it to say that our hope for the perfect home went up in smoke and we left the street in a “fowl” mood!

When you begin your home search, keep in mind that there’s more to consider than the number of bedrooms, square footage, house design and location.  Sounds and smells are often important factors that aren’t on the list, but should be!

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