No abode is perfect when you first purchase it. When home hunting, it can be tempting to search until the end of time for the perfect one, but we know that isn’t possible. As an interior designer, I give my clients in both Florida and Chicago a few pieces of advice when they’re house-hunting. If you don’t love a home at first sight, don’t fret! You can still work with your interior designer to create your dream home. When searching for your next home, here are a few tips to start off right:
Be Color Blind
It can be difficult to do, but when walking into someone else’s home, you need to envision it as your home, done in your style and your colors. This is the time to be color blind! Don’t focus on the existing furniture, patterns or wall color that the current homeowners have. These can/will all change. Try to look beyond all that eye clutter and focus instead on the room layout, the amount of light coming through the windows, the height of the ceilings, the views, the amount of stairs, etc.
Modify or Renovate?
Of course we know that everything in a home can be changed, one way or another. Heck, even a brand new home is likely to require paint, fixtures, and other changes that make it truly yours But it’s important to know, at the outset, how much change you have the heart for! For example, as you’re looking at the kitchen, what’s needed to make it yours? Perhaps there’s no hope and only a complete renovation will do, or perhaps simply changing the cabinet doors is all that’s needed. Going into the home-hunting process, understand what you have the stamina to undertake so that you know what to look for when you walk in the door.
Be armed with data
Measure your key furnishings prior to house hunting, and take the info with you. This would be for your sofa, chairs and coffee table; large artwork; dining room set; bed, bedside tables, and dresser, etc. Armed with this information and a tape measure, you can quickly determine if the rooms in the home you’re looking at will work for your furniture.
Budget
If mortgage payments are at the top of your budget, you may not have the funds to make your new house a home. It’s important to ensure you leave enough room in your budget for any renovations or other cosmetic updates that will need to be made. This even includes purchasing new furniture, and other furnishings like window treatments or a new rug.
Are you looking for a new home? Give us a call. We often accompany clients on house hunting expeditions to help determine what work might be required to make a house their home.
