Now that you have your list of needs and wants and you
know how much you can afford to spend, it's time to look at
some houses! Not just yet. Step back for a moment and
consider the larger picture. People don't just buy a house;
they buy the neighborhood the house is in. Think about
that...if you found the perfect house but it was in a
neighborhood that wasn't to your liking, would you make an
offer on it? Most likely the answer would be, "No."
So, you will need to make another list of what type of
neighborhood you want to live in. You will most likely want
to consider things like how living in the neighborhood will
affect your drive time to and from work, what amenities are
offered (swimming pool, tennis courts, park, etc.), and, if
you have children who are attending school or soon will be,
what school district you will be in and how close the
schools are. You may even want to make two lists just as
you did with your home criteria.
Your real estate agent can help you consolidate the
information from your list of needs and wants for your
home, your preapproval, and your list of needs and wants
for the neighborhood. From this, you can incorporate this
information into a broad search profile, which will then be
narrowed down to specific areas dictated by the market in
which you will be looking. Your agent's experience in local
markets will be an invaluable resource during this step.