Buying a house will likely be the most expensive purchase you will ever make in your life.
It’s important you take time to understand the process of buying a house and to carefully consider the house you are buying… This includes carefully viewing a house you think you want to buy. The question is, how many times should you view a house?
We would recommend you view a house you are buying at least twice (even if you think you have fallen in love at first-sight).
Here are 3 reasons why which will leave you running to book another viewing with the estate agent.
1. You will have missed details.
It’s really easy to be overwhelmed by a property you are seeing for the first-time and you will get sensory overload. You will be trying to take in the overall appearance of the property, its layout & imaging yourself in the environment. There is lots of information for your brain to process & think about. As a result, you will miss things. You will likely overlook little details, even if you are consciously trying to look out for them. These little details might include cracks in the walls, areas of water damage or just doing things like testing the water pressure. You will be asking yourself to do a lot if you are relying on a single viewing, don’t let yourself make the mistake of missing anything & just organise another viewing!
2. You can't get a feel for the neighbourhood.
As they say, you can change a house but you can’t change the location & the surrounding neighbourhood forms a significant part of this. Did you view the house out of rush hour when the roads were quiet? Did you view the house during the week when all the local residents were at work and parking wasn’t an issue? There are lots of factors which can change in a neighbourhood based on the time of day, the day of the week or just the hour. It is really important to give yourself the best opportunity to get a feel for the neighbourhood before you buy a house & taking the time to go on multiple viewings can help you to achieve this! Try to see the house & it’s surroundings during different times of the day but also take time to explore the area. Does it have all the amenities you need? Does the area fit your lifestyle & preferences? These are things you can’t change very easily so take the time to consider them before making any offers… a second viewing can help this process!
3. A single viewing gives you a single snapshot.
It’s really important to make sure any house you are buying is suitable for you & a single viewing only allows you to see a house in a single snapshot. By viewing a house more than once, you will get more time to take in the house & you can better visualise how you might use the space. It will give you more opportunities to see if the house & its space aligns with your vision. An analogy we like to consider is buying a pair of jeans, you’ll try them on in the shop & then you’ll try them on at home again to make sure they are right before taking the labels. Why are you only trying a house on once? You can’t take it back very easily!
We know first-hand how easy it is to fall in love with a house at first-sight but try not to rush into making an offer without going on at least a second viewing.
It’s a big decision you are making & it shouldn’t be taken lightly….
You need to inspect a property thoroughly, get a true feel for the neighbourhood and properly imagine the space as your own. It is much easier to do all this without making mistakes when you view a house multiple times.
We hope you have found this post helpful, please send us an email if you have any specific questions about your house buying journey. We are here to support you as you embark on this exciting new chapter!
Don’t forget to follow us on social media for more tips to help you with the house buying process. Alternatively, let us help you to find a buying agent local to you who can help you more specifically! What are you waiting for?
Are you a property professional who would like join Doormarked?
