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Relocating - Should I Rent Before I Buy?

By
Real Estate Agent with Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage BRE#01732313

Good question. Those who have been homeowners before, usually want to own a home again in their new cities. But occasionally, the reasons that people move far from their familiar surroundings are centered on other major life changes such as:

  • Job relocations
  • Moving closer to family
  • Divorce
  • Retirement
  • Moving for economic reasons

There can be so many pressures associated with the reasons for moving, that indivduals and families can feel additional stress trying to accomodate those larger life changes, as well as the work involved finding a suitable family home. And many times they don't have familiarity with the new city in question.  

One option is to rent for 6 months to a year, while getting to know the new community and neighborhoods. While moving an additional time certainly isn't ideal, in the long run it may be beneficial.  For those moving to the Tri Valley areas of Livermore, Pleasanton and Dublin, they may be surprised to find that inventory levels are relatively low. And once you narrow your searching to a price range, size range, and area of a town, the number of available homes on the market at a given time, can be lower than you might expect. No one wants to feel as if they've made a rush decision for a place they expect to call home for a long time to come.

Think about it from the perspective of where you live now?  What do you know about your community that you only learned after living their for a while?  MY husband and I have talked about relocating at some future retirement date, to as of yet, an undetermined place.  And renting first while we explore the area, and figure out where we really want to be is an option we will seriously consider

 

Alan Adamo
Westline Real Estate - Huntington Beach, CA
Your Huntington Beach REALTOR®

Karen, thanks for sharing and that is some really great advice for anyone who is considering relocating. I would definitely agree that renting first makes a lot of sense before committing to a certain area. :)

Sep 18, 2011 07:33 AM
Donne Knudsen
Los Angeles & Ventura Counties in CA - Simi Valley, CA
CalState Realty Services

Karen - I second that!  Definitely rent for awhile before buying in a new area that you know nothing about.

Sep 18, 2011 10:29 AM
Karen Crowson
Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage - Rancho Bernardo, CA
Your Agent for Change

This weekend we were in San Diego, where my son would love to see us relocate someday. Just driving through a couple of neighborhoods, I was definitely overwhelmed. San Diego is really big, and understanding commute patterns, and traffic, in addition to where my kids live, would take some time to figure out. I will certainly take my own advice when the time comes!

Sep 19, 2011 06:39 PM