There is no set number of houses you should see before you decide. Visit as many as it takes to find the one you want. On average, home buyers see fifteen houses before choosing one. Just be sure to communicate often with your real estate agent or the seller depending on whom you’re working with about everything you’re looking for. It will help avoid wasting your time.
Home shopping is not as easy or as clear-cut as buying a new car. A five-minute drive in a used car will reveal whether the brakes work properly, the gears shift correctly and the interior is to your liking.
When shopping for a home, even a one-hour tour won’t turn up all defects and all your likes and dislikes. Approach the process with a critical eye and be willing to spend some time to find the right one. There are always more newspapers to look at, more homebuyer magazines to peruse, more yard signs to follow up on and more listings to look at with real estate agents. So unless you’re in a real time crunch to get into a new home, the best bet is to just take your time and wait for the right home to come along.
Regardless of what type of market you’re operating in, how big or small your budget is or how quickly you need to get into your new home, it is important not to rush this decision as it’s probably the biggest financial commitment you will make in your lifetime. If you find yourself in an uncomfortable situation like being pressured to make a decision or risk losing the home for example, that doesn’t feel quite right then your best move may be to back away from the deal and sleep on it for a night or two, talk it over with your real estate agent, attorney and/or family and then come back to the situation with an educated, fresh view. If the deal is still there when you return then it may be time to make a decision. If not then move on to the next opportunity.
