Wants and Needs... and nice to haves

Maybe four walls, a roof, and running water is a little too sparse when you think of your ideal home. Don’t worry, you’re not alone.

This is where the creative mind has lots of fun – from engineered hardwood to a kitchen island, from recessed ceiling lights to a pagoda, there are as many unique and stylistic features to a home as there are people to dream them up.

Okay, now you can go and start perusing listings to get some ideas of like versus don’t like. Remember to jot down some notes along the way and keep them in your Profile Builder as this will help your Manor Agent line up the best of the best based on your tastes.

Before you head over though, have a look at this special exercise we’ve prepared below, it might just help you make house hunting that much easier:

Here’s an exercise to help you visualize your ideal home:

1) Location, Location, Location:

a. Urban Centre
b. Suburban Paradise
c. Cozy Condo
d. Ultra Modern Loft

When you’re thinking about what you’d like to live in, think about where it will be. Maybe getting one of those posh post codes seems nice but will you be getting the value for your dollar? Conversely, no one wants to live next door to the town garbage dump.Are there schools nearby? Grocery stores and transit routes? Before you get in too deep on the window treatments and bannisters, think about what your needs are when it comes to how the location fits your way of life. If not, you may find that you’ve somehow taken on a 2-hour commute to go with your marble countertops.

2) Where will you rest your head:

a. How many bedrooms would be appropriate?
b. Do you have a growing family and need 3 or more?
c. Is it just you and your partner looking for a place to sleep and maybe a home office?

Understanding how many people need to be able to live comfortably in the home will help you quickly figure out the size needs of your potential abode!

3) The same goes for bathrooms!

a. Pre-teens or teenagers? A house with 2 or more bathrooms is probably a must.
b. Maybe you can get by on 1. 5 baths?

Bathroom space is becoming more and more important to home buyers. Sometimes a sanctuary ensuite is desired and sometimes a simple extra water closet for guests would make all the difference.

4) The kitchen

a. Culinary wizard?
b. Home cooked meals once per week?
c. Take-out all the time?

Your eating habits and the eating needs of your family will be a huge factor in determining if you need to go with a full eat-in kitchen, complete with walk-in pantry or if you can get away with just a galley.

Now that we’ve covered the bare necessities, consider what features are your deal breakers!

1) Detached garage? What about an automatic garage door?
2) Patio space for a BBQ?
3) Full basement? Or is a well insulated crawl space a better idea?

There are plenty of features that you’ll put in the “want” category and that’s fantastic. The more you know about your preferences, and share with your Manor Agent, the better it will be for him or her to help you narrow down those preferences and find something that genuinely meets your needs and includes some amazing value-added features.

If Only...

1) Hot Tub? Jacuzzi?
2) Sunroom?
3) Maybe even some furnishings... like a grand piano?

We all have our wishes, those things that we strive to earn, build or achieve. You are certainly entitled to your “nice to have” list as well but as long as you’re honest with yourself that these things are not deal breaking features, you’ll do just fine working with your Manor Agent to find the right mix of features and benefits that suit you best.

PRO TIP: You don’t know what you don’t know. Your Manor Agent will surprise you with features and benefits you’ve never thought of. They have a keen eye for those ultra-value adds perks that make buying a home so much better!

Next Steps – The Critical Path to your Real Estate Success:

These questions may feel overwhelming at first but there is good news! By using the tools provided on this website, the answers are all available to you right now. When it’s time to move on to the next steps, you’ll have everything you need to:

1) Have a first meeting with your Manor Agent.
2) Setup visits to Open Houses, private viewings and even new-build model home visits.
3) Work with your Manor Agent to craft a competitive, fair and attractive offer for someone selling their property.
4) Finish everything off with a firm handshake and all the paperwork that comes with closing the purchase of your new home.

Access Manor Realty's toolbox, containing calculators and resources to help you find all your magic numbers along the way. Once you’ve built your profile using the Profile Builder tool, contact any Manor Agent of your choice and share your profile information with him/her. He or she will then follow up with you to start the
conversation and begin the journey to Guiding You Home.