A Guide to Choosing the Right Home for Your Future

The purchase of a new home is unlike any other investment you might make over the course of your life. It’s something that will have long-term ripple effects in your finances. But it’s also something that will impact your lifestyle and personal well-being.

Getting the decision right, and avoiding regrets, often means weighing a number of different criteria. Let’s consider a few of the more important factors you might look out for.

Assessing Your Long-Term Priorities

What might your life look like in years to come? Do you intend to start a family? Where are you going to be working? Will your new home need to support any specialised hobbies?

For example, if you know that you’re going to be regularly commuting to the centre of a nearby city, then picking a home that’s close to public transport links might be essential. On the other hand, you might seek to keep your options open, since you might not have a good idea of what the future holds.

Ideally, you’ll make a list of essential features, and merely nice-to-have ones, before you start looking at houses.

Understanding Market Context and Timing

It’s worth spending a little bit of time thinking about the local property market, and how it’s likely to be impacted in the future. If you understand that activity is subdued, or that it’s on the rise, then you’ll have a stronger basis for considering how flexible you can be. There are also certain times of year at which it’s easier, and cheaper, to make a purchase.

Features That Matter Most for Future Proofing

Certain features might offer tremendous value, not only in the immediate future, but over the coming months and years. Here, we’re talking about things like quality integrated appliances, and decent heating and electrical systems. The availability of good, reliable broadband might also be pivotal, especially if you intend to work from home.

This is where new-build homes tend to come out on top, relative to older ones. Many buyers now prefer them for their superior energy performance, modern layouts, and integrated, cutting-edge appliances. Move into one, and you’ll be able to avoid the extra expense that comes with refurbishment and rewiring.

Practical Steps for Viewing and Due Diligence

When you go to view a prospective purchase, you get a unique opportunity to inspect it. An in-person viewing can reveal details and defects that enquiries and documents might conceal. You might compose a checklist of things to look out for. Make sure that you look at the structure and fabric of the building, and get your conveyancer to talk you through relevant legal details, like your tenure and surveys.