By Melissa Dorman, September 25, 2020
It’s easy to tour a home and forget what’s important to you. Use this handy checklist to avoid distraction and maintain focus as you view potential homes for you and your family.
Make the Most of Your Next Home Tour with This Handy Checklist
As you embark on your home buying journey, touring potential homes is an exciting step towards finding the perfect property for you and your family. When a house is beautifully staged with attractive interior design, it can be easy to forget about details that feel small now but could turn into a bigger problem after moving in.
In a real estate industry that always seems to move quickly, it’s important to know what to look for when touring a house. Enter the house with a checklist of your priorities and don’t make compromises when it comes to that list. When you walk through the potential home, focus on aspects of the house that you can’t change—this means looking past pretty decorations and things that would be inexpensive to change.
As you enter a home for the first walk-through, focus on this checklist to make sure that you get everything you need from your new house.
What’s the Neighborhood Like?
Before you even pull in the driveway, check out the condition of other houses in the neighborhood. Are the nearby lawns mowed and houses well taken care of? Or do homes have chipped paint and overgrown yards? Keep your eye out for regular street lamps, the amount of traffic on nearby roads, and access to public transportation. If the home doesn’t have a driveway, is there accessible street parking nearby as an alternative?
If you have school-aged children, locate nearby schools in the neighborhood. When you search homes with Homes.com, you’ll find ratings for nearby school districts on the home’s listing page. Be sure to also check out the value of other homes in the neighborhood to get an idea of the right price for the home.
Home’s Exterior
Once you’ve scoped out the neighborhood, take a moment to focus on the home’s exterior. Don’t be afraid to ask questions about the age of the roof, siding, windows, and foundation. Make sure the gutters look relatively new, and like they’re functioning well. If the home is south facing, does it require frequent repainting due to sun exposure?
Pay attention to how the yard is landscaped. If it looks high maintenance with lots of flowers that require regular watering, are you ready to invest in a garden and the equipment required to maintain it? Does the home have enough privacy from the rest of the neighborhood?
Before you start looking at houses, think about how much time and money you’ll be able to invest in the outdoor space of your home. Avoid touring homes that you don’t think you’ll have the time to properly take care of.
The Home’s Interior
The interior of the home is where you’ll presumably be spending most of your time, so take a lot of time to scrutinize the conditions of each room. Take note of the condition of the floors, walls, windows, and ceilings. Ask about warped floor boards and water damage, as these may be signs of leaks and mold.
Does the floor plan of the home seem suitable to you and your family’s needs? If you have small children, you’ll probably want all the bedrooms on the same floor. Will you have to carry loads of laundry from the basement all the way to the bedrooms on the third floor? Think about the way you move around and through your home, and make sure this home’s floor plan makes sense for your unique needs.
Are the kitchen and bathroom appliances modern, clean, and well taken care of? Check for mold and mildew in the bathroom in addition to making sure all the fans in the kitchen and bathroom work properly.
Home Systems
Ask about whether the home is energy efficient, how it receives heat and electricity, and what kind of HVAC system is currently in use. If you dream of one day installing solar panels for your home, make sure it gets enough sunlight to make this possible, and that the roof is strong enough to support the addition of panels.
Ask about what the utility bills generally look like each month, and keep your eye out for good insulation as this will save you money on your utility bills all year round. A home inspector will check to make sure the furnace and air conditioner work properly, but you can ask ahead of time to get an idea. A recent energy summit in Orlando Florida had a representative from Insulate It Solutions talk on the positives and negatives of spray foam and blown in insulation. Also covered were stats regarding energy costs that homeowners can expect from using the proper attic insulation choice and R-Value.
Does the home have a security system that allows you to feel more comfortable in the neighborhood?
Pests
Keep your eye out for signs of pests inside and outside of the house. Open up kitchen cabinets and look for mouse droppings. Let your nose be your guide when checking for pest infestation—cockroaches and mice often leave a recognizable scent.
If you notice something suspicious that might indicate that there is a pest problem, be sure to open up a conversation about it with the owner or real estate agent to learn about the history of the problem and ensure that the problem is being taken care of.
Focus on Your Priorities
As you tour homes, keep in mind the elements of a home that are most important to you. Are you looking for a four-bedroom home with a huge yard for the kids to play in? Do you need a short commute to work? Once you know what you’re looking for, it’ll be easier to rule out homes that aren’t a fit for you and your family.
Melissa Dorman
Broker | OR & WA
She/They
Ten years ago, Melissa was living in a slum in Kolkata, India, helping over 200 women escape sex trafficking by providing alternative work at a social business.
It was there she discovered her passion for financial education as a means of empowering people to move out of poverty. After graduating from UCLA with a Masters, Melissa spent 5 years working as a Social Worker; assisting clients facing homelessness, in jail, or at a psychiatric facility.
As much as she loved the work, imagining saving for retirement on the meager salary of a social worker was becoming grim. That's when Melissa discovered "passive income." In no time, she fell in LOVE with real estate as a vehicle for wealth. Soon after, Melissa began locating off-market multi-family properties to purchase through creative financing strategies and win-win opportunities. Two years into investing, Melissa quit her day job as a Social Worker to become a full-time broker and investor. Initially, she was drawn to people in difficult circumstances, so she developed extensive experience assisting families facing foreclosure, short sales, and probate. Melissa is well versed in helping her clients overcome complex real estate challenges.
Currently, Melissa is teamed up with Super Broker, Yascha Noonberg at Living Room Realty. Together they assist clients to achieve their real estate dreams, including how to strategically buy and sell a personal residence to maximize profits. Far from the slums of Kolkata, her greatest passion now is empowering other working professionals to develop passive forms of income through buying multi-family properties in Portland.
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- T: 503-567-4697
- melissa@livingroomre.com
