People sometimes have a hard time deciding what they want in a house.
“I want a $500,000 house for $300,000″ said the buyer after the fifth trip out. Hmmm…at each house we have judged and debated the rooms, layout, paint colors, features and location. One house is too big, the next too small, another needs a new roof or major updates to the kitchen and baths. Some are too far from work while others are on busy streets.
After spending many, many hours online and a fair number of hours out looking, this buyer seems no closer to finding a house to buy in the western suburbs of Chicago, despite the fact that we have so many lovely St. Charles IL homes for sale, not to mention all the great homes in Geneva and Batavia, IL.
And now I know why. On the one hand, these folks want a beautiful home in a great school district to raise their young family. They want mature trees and a fenced yard and room for a play set. But they haven’t quite moved past the shine and gloss of their upscale city condo with it’s granite counter tops and stainless appliances.
And in addition to the “perfect house” these folks finally told me that they want to “get a deal”. They want a $500,000 house for $300,000.
“Getting a deal” is always relative, isn’t it? Virtually every house we’ve looked at is a great deal! Many of these house would have been in the $500,000s in 2005. But the drop in values isn’t consistent across neighborhoods and the best investment on paper might not be the prettiest or cleanest or most updated.
No matter how much money someone has to spend on a house, the decision will always involve trade-offs. I’ve sold multi-million dollar estates to people who were dissatisfied with their decision and $200,000 condos to people who were so happy they cried at the closing. Happiness with a decision in choosing a house seems to be relative to the clarity of the goals.
A great long-term financial investment might be a different decision from the home someone wants their new baby to take her first steps in. Maybe we can find both….but getting the goals lined up is the most important step.
I list and sell homes in the western suburbs of Chicago, including the communities of St. Charles, Geneva and Batavia. If you would like to talk about buying or selling a home go to my website give me a call at (630)945-7935.
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