Homebuyers Guide

So you are considering a new home? For most people your home is the largest purchase that you will make. Your choice will have an impact on your daily routine, your quality of living and your foreseeable and unforeseeable future. You will spend a significant amount of your time in your home, whether you are relaxing with your family or entertaining friends and loved ones.

With the impact it will have on your life, the home buying process can be overwhelming at times. We hope to offer some direction and advice in this exciting time. The following four principles should have you seeing clearly in your decision making process.

Steps

1. Budget

2. Location

3. Property Size

4. Home & Features

Budgeting the Purchase

Determining your budget is the most important factor you can consider as it will affect all the remaining decisions. If you are unable to purchase a home outright, you will want to determine what size of loan you are comfortable with and how much money you would want to pay out monthly.  Once you know if you qualify for the amount you have determined you are on your way, now you are ready to start looking for a location.

Location

The mere fact that you are reading this article probably means that you have likely already uncovered this little gem of land known as the Treasure Valley. This area constantly shows up as one of the best places to live in the United States. Here is the quick list of the reasons why it is so desirable:

  • Low crime Rates
  • Proximal to Mountains & Wildlife
  • Plethora of Outdoor Activities
  • Mild Traffic
  • Low Density of Population, Spacious
  • Optimal Prepper Zone
  • Low Cost of Living
  • High Ranking of Amenities
  • Low Danger of Natural Disasters
  • Opportunities Available
  • Low Unemployment
  • Reputation of Vigilant Freedom Loving Americans
  • People are Generally Friendly and Caring.

Once you confirm the benefits of this location then it becomes a refining process of where in the Treasure Valley that best suits you. The further West you go from Boise the more rural the land becomes and the more affordable. From here it will be important to consider your place of work, how close you wish to be to shopping and stores.   Once you have determined an area you now must decide how much property is required to fit your wants and needs.  If Canyon County is your area of choice we at Sunset Homes would be interested in building your home.

How much property to buy

You can typically add on to your home, but rarely will you have an opportunity to add to your property. There are pros and cons to having less or more property. The positives of owning substantial land is that: you have room to expand, room for outbuildings or additions, more spacious feel. The drawbacks of owning acreage is that you will have more maintenance which can take up considerable amounts of time, it can be more expensive with improvements such as a well and septic tank that are typically needed.  Fuel costs are likely to increase with increased driving times to get to stores and shopping. So examine your family size, your foreseeable future plans, and determine the range of land that suits your life style and your budget.

House Features

You should now be able to determine what type of budget you have for your house plan and features. It is generally a good idea to reserve money for upgrade features that will personalize a selected plan. Bigger is not always better, sometimes it is better to have a smaller home that is better designed, not to mention more affordable. One way to determine where you should upgrade your home is by observing the time spent in your current residence, don’t forget about time spent outside or in the garage, then consider upgrading your most frequented areas.  A minimum of $5,000 should be allocated to upgrades and preferably much more than that as it is easy to quickly spend once you get to looking at all the things you can do to a home.

Thank you for considering Sunset Homes as a partner in accompanying you on this exciting journey.