Should you buy that less than perfect house?

The answer to that question has to, and will be different for everyone. If your opinion of less than perfect means that you don't particularly care for the landscaping, that's one thing. If it means that the house is missing one room for your needs, that's another. So how do you decide if this "less than perfect" house is the right one for you?

First of all, do not let ANYONE, including a spouse, significant other, friend, family member, (or heaven forbid) your agent talk you into purchasing something that you do not want, or are not quite sure that you want.

What are your wants and needs for your new home? Are they realistic within your price range?

When I meet new buyer clients for the first time, I sit down with them and ask them a number of questions to ascertain what is important and what is not so important. I also want to find out what is an absolute "NO",  no matter what. Sometimes, it's hard for a buyer to figure out what is truly important, what they can live with and what would be unacceptable.

A little give and take depending on the importance of whatever criteria you have can be crucial to  finding a great house.  Let's look at a few examples:

You want a remodeled kitchen.

Well, that's fair enough. It can be a major disruption to remodel a kitchen, and that's not even taking the cost into account. Have you looked at the kitchen closely? If the cabinets are in good shape and the color of those cabinets is acceptable, what about changing the hardware and/or changing the countertop? The cost of that can surely be negotiated with the seller (although we wouldn't necessarily tell them that)

You do not want a  house on a main road.

Reasonable, too. By the way, what is your definition of a main road? A road divided by "double yellow lines", one that has a State Route number attached to it, one that has commercial development down the street, or maybe something that doesn't fit into any of those categories? Well, okay... you can't change a location. But if the house sits far back enough, would that make a difference to you? If it doesn't, then don't bother looking at homes on main roads, and make sure that your agent knows your personal definition of a main road.

The walls need painting, the carpet needs replacing, the floors need refinishing, or other  minor cosmetics.

Some buyers just don't want to be bothered with doinf any cosmetic work at all. And that's fine too.
If you knew that a home had everything else that you wanted, but needed the floors refinished in a few rooms, would you still say no to it?  What if the cosmetic work was completed prior to closing with the contractor of your choice ? Would that make a difference?

The house has everything you want, except it has a pool and you don't want one.

Also reasonable. Let me ask you this-  If the pool wasn't there, would you want to buy that house? If so, we can always ask the sellers to remove it. Simple as that. And, yes,  sellers have done it.

What I am trying to get at is that sometimes we want certain things that may not seem so obviously attainable if we don't ask, or try and figure out an easy solution that you can live with.

Certain things can't be solved to your satisfaction. But lots of other things can. Sometimes it takes imagination, but one thing is  for certain. If the house is that close to what you want, there must be a way to make it work. A great agent can make it happen, and I just happen to know someone! You can send me an email and we'll get started anytime you like.
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