A house is most likely the biggest thing you will ever buy.
You search for weeks and you think you've found the right one.
But how can you be sure?
It's a hard decision to make under pressure, but we're here to help.
Once you found a house you love,
there are 10 important questions you should ask
before you make an offer.
You need to know two things about your budget,
how much you can afford to spend,
and how much does the house cost.
You should know your budget before you even start looking at homes.
That includes getting pre-approved for a mortgage.
So you know how much house you can afford.
But remember, just because you're pre-approved for a mortgage
doesn't mean you can afford it.
In addition to the sticker price,
there are also closing costs to budget for, like
inspection fees, legal fees, land transfer taxes and so on.
You should add three to four percent of the purchase price
to account for closing costs.
You also need to estimate the ongoing costs of owning the home.
These are known as carrying costs.
Carrying costs include mortgage payments,
property taxes, utilities, home insurance.
and don't forget to include an annual maintenance budget.
Experts suggest budgeting between one and four percent
of the home's value on maintenance each year.
Of course, knowing when the house was built matters a lot.
But the age of the house doesn't tell the whole story.
There are some individual components that can and should be replaced regularly.
First, the roof. Old or poorly maintained roofs tend to leak,
and that leads to all sorts of problems.
Mold, rot and even total collapse are all things to worry about
if the roof is in bad shape.
Replacing roofs is expensive, so it's important
to know about the roof's condition.
Plus, old roofs can make it harder to find home insurance.
Next, check the home's internal systems,
like heating, electricity, plumbing and ventilation.
An old home might have an outdated electrical system
that uses fuses instead of breakers, which is a fire hazard.
Or, it might be full of leak-prone poly b or high-tech plumbing.
A water leak hazard.
If your target home has any of these outdated systems,
you'll probably need to replace them after the purchase.
New roofs and home systems are great,
but there are other kinds of upgrades to pay attention to as well.
If the house has had major renovations like a finished attic or an added garage,
you need to be certain that they were done properly.
That includes checking permits and seeing if the owners
can provide the name of the contractor that did the work.
Major renovations very often require building permits,
and they should always be done by a qualified contractor.
You don't want to buy a house that's going to start falling apart at the seams.
It's one thing to check that the house itself meets all your needs.
After all, you can always renovate or upgrade.
But you can't do anything to change the world outside your property lines.
So make sure you scope out the neighborhood.
If you can, spend some time near your potential house,
ideally at a few different times of the day
to get a feel for the area.
Check out local services, especially schools, grocery stores, clinics.
And anything else you consider important.
If you use public transit, look at a bus schedule and walking times.
And, this can be a big one.
Investigate noise sources.
Nearby railroad tracks, airports, fire stations,
and even traffic can be terribly noisy.
You might not notice these things without spending some time in the area.
You may or may not be interested in ever meeting your neighbours,
but it can still be worthwhile introducing yourself before you buy the house.
Knock on the doors of your potential neighbours just to say hi,
and get a quick read on what they might be like.
It's also an opportunity to ask questions about the neighbourhood.
You might get better answers from neighbours
who don't have a vested interest in getting you to buy their home.
Even better, if you can get in touch with the seller,
ask them what they think of their neighbours.
If you need to commute into work every day, pay attention to
what the trip will be like from your new home.
Looking it up on Google Maps is one way,
but a better way is to try and drive it yourself
during the times of day you normally do it.
This way, you can get a sense of what traffic is like.
That includes discovering any nasty surprises that might be
laying in wait for you on your drive to work.
Like drawbridges or railroad crossings.
You'll be glad you did,
if it helps you avoid waiting for a four kilometre train to pass
while you're already running late for work.
You should never buy a house without having it inspected.
A qualified home inspector can help identify potential issues
that you'd otherwise miss.
If you're going to make an offer on the house,
you should make the inspection a condition of the offer.
This way, you can adjust your offer or walk away completely,
if the inspector turns up anything problematic.
You should also find out how long your target home has been up for sale.
It's a red flag if your house is an outlier compared to the nearby homes.
If most houses in the city are selling quickly,
and yours has been on the market for months.
There may be an issue you're not seeing.
Before you make an offer on a house,
you should be clear about exactly what you're buying.
That might seem obvious. You're buying a house.
But there are things attached to or inside the house,
that may or may not be part of the sale.
Are the current owners planning to take their appliances with them? For example.
What about light fixtures?
Maybe there's a hot tub on the deck, do you get that?
Those odds and ends can add up to thousands of dollars.
So make sure you're clear about whether you're paying for them.
Take some time to figure out what it's going to be like
to buy home insurance for your potential new house.
This can help you figure out your ongoing costs,
but it can also illuminate problems you might face in the future.
See if you can find out the home insurance claim history of the home.
Yes, that's easier said than done.
But the owners might be willing to provide it.
Realtors can sometimes track down the information as well.
Home insurance claim histories can be helpful
in identifying recurring issues like sewer backups.
You'd need a plan to address them if you buy the house.
As well, think about any natural disasters the house might be prone to.
Is it at risk for wildfires?
What about earthquakes? Hailstorms? Landslides?
Knowing which risks the house faces will ensure you
buy the right insurance coverage,
and understand what steps you'll need to take to protect your home.
For 16 additional tips on what to consider before buying a home,
check out our full article by clicking the link in the description below.
Thank you for watching, and I hope you found this helpful.