Yesterday I got to do one of my favorite things in this business: help a friend move BACK to the DFW area - or in this case, to move to the DFW area for the FIRST TIME! Who DOESN'T get excited that an old friend will soon be a neighbor?? I was giddy excited, and really wanted to do a great job to help them find their new home as fast as possible.
As I mentioned, neither the Mr or the Mrs has EVER lived in DFW. When making a "blind move", your home buying strategy is somewhat different than if you are moving to an area where you have some kind of a background or knowledge base.
How is it different?
The biggest difference - and the largest challenge - is knowing WHICH CITY to focus on! You essentially must shop the cities BEFORE you can shop for a house.
As their agent, I asked lots and lots of questions to see what areas would make the most sense, like:
- Where will you be working?
- How far of a commute are you comfortable with?
- Will you want to take advantage of the DART Rail system, or will you be driving in to work?
- Are finding good public schools a concern, or will you be finding a private school?
- What is your price range?
- Are you OK with older homes, or do you prefer the newer?
- HOA or NO HOA's?
- What kind of recreational activiities does your family enjoy? Boating? Golf? Art?
- What size LOT do you want your home to be on? Need acreage? Townhomes or Condos OK?
All of these answers help guide me - do they stay in Dallas, or head to a suburb? If a suburb, which one? If I don't ask all the right questions, then I'm going at this just as blind as they are! It's my goal to help get them on the right course from the beginning.
If YOU are making a "blind move" it's ESSENTIAL to have a REALTOR working with you who really understands the market. Especially in a large market like Dallas. They'll be able to ask the right questions to help steer you in the right direction from the beginning...thus saving you lots of time - both in the car looking at homes, and online searching through thousands!
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