Things you wish you knew before buying house?

Around here that wouldn't matter. All the school districts put up bonds for one reason or another. Heck for 2018 property tax amount my school district removed a bond but added another bond in its place. It's kinda a never ending cycle lol.

But it's something the person could look at to see if there presently is something.

Good thing though to keep in mind.

There are many variables though to utility costs.

1) How many people live in the house

2) How much energy they use (either with electricity or with natural gas or some other form)

3) The efficiency of the home meaning are there any air leaks/drafts---you mentioned that. OP could have the home inspected and tested for that but I'm not sure I would rely on the utility costs/usage and make a determination of leaks only off of that because people don't all do the same things when it comes to heating, cooling, lights on in the home, water usage, etc. Our home may be an Energy Star rated home but we also keep the home cooler in the winter and warmer in the summer. If someone else lived in our exact same home they may not do the same thing and their costs may be different just for that reason.

4) What type of lawn care there is not only how 'nice' you want your yard to look but also individual land differences such as the soil, such as the type of grass, is there more shade or more sun, etc. All of that can lead to higher water usage for instance even if looking at a prior owner. We actually joke about this guy down the street from us. His lawn looks soooooo good. But we know his water usage is astronomical compared to ours. We want our lawn to look good but we're not going to go bankrupt trying to keep the grass award winning looking lol.

5), etc.
THIS... our house was built to “ green home standards “ the builder gets a tax break for those but it is great for utilities. We are with city utilities and it includes gas , electric, water , storm water and garbage services and have not paid more then 160.00 a month ( high end ) and this is in Florida . The house stays cool in the summer and warmer in the winter .
 
Make sure you have enough in savings after you close for any unexpected repairs. A good home inspection is a must and as PP noted should check for things that are expensive to fix after the house is yours - lead and asbestos abatement, bad plumbing, wiring and HVAC, roof and drainage, etc. Make sure you like the neighborhood and check on the zoning to make sure that lovely empty lot isn't destined to become something undesirable. If you have kids, make sure your house is actually in the school district that you want because sometimes the street address can be deceiving. If the house will be in an HOA make sure you understand all of the restrictions and the process they have for making changes later on.

To add to this- how much is the insurance and property taxes per year/ per month?

Take a deep breath. It’s a bit overwhelming, but if you check all the boxes and the price is in your budget you will love having your own place.

I rented a cute bungalow near a nature preserve and down the road from the beach before I met my husband. My landlord was an elderly retired Greek restauranteur who lived in the the main house. He had fig trees and grew massive gardens, all for the pickings. I loved living there and didn’t have to worry about taxes, insurance, repairs, etc. I hear where you are coming from.

But, I love having my own flower and veggie gardens, and everything else that comes with owning your own place. Good luck!!
 
To add to this- how much is the insurance and property taxes per year/ per month?

Take a deep breath. It’s a bit overwhelming, but if you check all the boxes and the price is in your budget you will love having your own place.

I rented a cute bungalow near a nature preserve and down the road from the beach before I met my husband. My landlord was an elderly retired Greek restauranteur who lived in the the main house. He had fig trees and grew massive gardens, all for the pickings. I loved living there and didn’t have to worry about taxes, insurance, repairs, etc. I hear where you are coming from.

But, I love having my own flower and veggie gardens, and everything else that comes with owning your own place. Good luck!!

Thanks so much. I haven’t priced insurance just yet (waiting on inspection), but have done some research for a ballpark. The taxes aren’t bad, but we have both a CDD and HOA fee :rolleyes:
 
Thanks so much. I haven’t priced insurance just yet (waiting on inspection), but have done some research for a ballpark. The taxes aren’t bad, but we have both a CDD and HOA fee :rolleyes:

The insurance I use is great , it’s 850.00 a year and it’s a policy that replaces items but at current costs( replacement policy) , we had a lighting strike in our old house and had to replace all the fans and TVs plus the microwave ... some of them were even box TVs but they replaced with current size and type so it worked out great .
It’s important to have good insurance that’s for sure ! I think 850.00 a year for a 4 BR home is pretty good and it’s added to our mortgage.
 


The insurance I use is great , it’s 850.00 a year and it’s a policy that replaces items but at current costs( replacement policy) , we had a lighting strike in our old house and had to replace all the fans and TVs plus the microwave ... some of them were even box TVs but they replaced with current size and type so it worked out great .
It’s important to have good insurance that’s for sure ! I think 850.00 a year for a 4 BR home is pretty good and it’s added to our mortgage.

i'll second the replacement value coverage, it came into effect for me years ago when my car was broken into b/c auto insurance doesn't cover the contents. i am also a huge fan of coverage that covers housing expenses if your home for some reason is uninhabitable due to a covered loss. we had an issue some years ago with a roof collapse that fortunately didn't keep us out of our place for more than a week but last minute hotel accommodations don't run cheap, and if it's something longer no one wants to be in the position of having to pay both their mortgage and long term rental costs.
 
Well one thing that just came to mind... I didn't realize the 150 piece bag of candy from Costco ins't enough on Halloween. We had to go the store at 7:00p to reload. No wonder all of the schools around here are bulging at the seams and the school district is reopening buildings they closed back in the 1970s.
 


i'll second the replacement value coverage, it came into effect for me years ago when my car was broken into b/c auto insurance doesn't cover the contents. i am also a huge fan of coverage that covers housing expenses if your home for some reason is uninhabitable due to a covered loss. we had an issue some years ago with a roof collapse that fortunately didn't keep us out of our place for more than a week but last minute hotel accommodations don't run cheap, and if it's something longer no one wants to be in the position of having to pay both their mortgage and long term rental costs.
ABSOLUTELY! good insurance is worth the cost .. especially in Florida . I would also add on hurricane insurance on your policy if your in a state that can get hurricanes . I think it adds about 200.00 and completely worth the peace of mind .
 
Nice new build on Greg Norman golf course but wish I would have known the claimed retired OB Gyn from Mexico next door was actually working for a Cartel. First was the big narcotics raid and then a little later was his assassination. There were signs but actually never dreamed the truth.

Can’t hurt to know as much about your potential neighbors as possible.
 
Nice new build on Greg Norman golf course but wish I would have known the claimed retired OB Gyn from Mexico next door was actually working for a Cartel. First was the big narcotics raid and then a little later was his assassination. There were signs but actually never dreamed the truth.

Can’t hurt to know as much about your potential neighbors as possible.
That sounds like something the HOA could charge a special assessment for. You got some extra entertainment. You got to live parts of many Hollywood movies!
 
That sounds like something the HOA could charge a special assessment for. You got some extra entertainment. You got to live parts of many Hollywood movies!
In all honesty the evening of the raid the entire neighborhood was gathered on my sidewalk and yard watching with slack jaws and yes I could have sold tickets. :) One time I received one of their letters and so thought I would return it. There was a blacked out black suv sitting in their driveway. I rang the doorbell a couple times and no answer so left the letter on the doorstep and started home. Their garage door opened and two thirty somethings come out dressed completely in good quality leathers and gave me “the look”. There was such malevolence that I automatically put my hands slightly up palms forward and said just leaving their letter we got by mistake. This was long before the raid.
 
Have purchased 7 homes over the years, and no regrets with any of them. Now, in our retirement home for 18 years - one regret - not building a ranch. Our master is on the first floor, so won't be an issue, but in the future - who knows if there will be issues for the three bedrooms plus dh's man cave (bonus room) upstairs.

Second regret - Having a vaulted living area - would rather have 10ft. coffered ceiling instead - heat/air more easily regulated.

Neither are issues that keep us awake - love our home otherwise. Would never want to rent - had enough of that in an apartment for a few months waiting for one home to be built.

OP, don't be afraid to take the plunge - all our homes have been win-wins.
 
Have purchased 7 homes over the years, and no regrets with any of them. Now, in our retirement home for 18 years - one regret - not building a ranch. Our master is on the first floor, so won't be an issue, but in the future - who knows if there will be issues for the three bedrooms plus dh's man cave (bonus room) upstairs.

Second regret - Having a vaulted living area - would rather have 10ft. coffered ceiling instead - heat/air more easily regulated.

Neither are issues that keep us awake - love our home otherwise. Would never want to rent - had enough of that in an apartment for a few months waiting for one home to be built.

OP, don't be afraid to take the plunge - all our homes have been win-wins.

Thanks! I’m a tried and true commitmentphobe :rotfl2:so it’s quite scary.

We’re waiting on the inspection report. I’m trying not to get too ahead of myself but already have kitchen/bathroom remodeling plans! :rolleyes2
I hate the kitchen so much!
 
Honestly, slow your roll. Live in a house for a bit before you remodel. You don't really know what a space needs until you've lived in it. For example, you have no idea yet what sort of light the house gets. You also don't know how you'll live in your house until you've lived there for a while. This past November we downsized and moved into a new home that has a smaller kitchen and pantry. Before we moved in I drew up plans to enclose one of the three kitchen entrances in order to add a second pantry. My husband convinced me to wait until after the holidays to make the changes and now I'm glad I did. It turns out that we use that entrance a lot for bringing in groceries from the car. Going through the other two entrances with bags is really annoying and inconvenient. I instead waited for a Container Store Elfa sale and paid the store consultant to remodel my existing panty.

The same goes for painting walls in a house. To choose a color you need to put large swatches of different colors on the wall and live with them for a week. Colors change throughout the day as the sunlight coming into the room changes. You can buy small pots called tester pots for that purpose. When we painted our bedroom blue in our last house we did that. It turns out our favorite choice looked awful on the wall at bedtime.

My final suggestion is to join the Gardenweb forums on the website Houzz and post your reno plans there. They provide the best invaluable and forthright advice regarding such matters. Their advice could end up saving you time, money and headaches.
 
I bought a house in the northeast and then realized the first winter that I didn't have a back up heat source if we lost power. Thankfully, I've never lost power for more then 24 hours (and that was in the summer). Several years later, we purchase a portable generator that can run the entire house if needed. We haven't lost power since then.
 
Honestly, slow your roll. Live in a house for a bit before you remodel. You don't really know what a space needs until you've lived in it. For example, you have no idea yet what sort of light the house gets. You also don't know how you'll live in your house until you've lived there for a while. This past November we downsized and moved into a new home that has a smaller kitchen and pantry. Before we moved in I drew up plans to enclose one of the three kitchen entrances in order to add a second pantry. My husband convinced me to wait until after the holidays to make the changes and now I'm glad I did. It turns out that we use that entrance a lot for bringing in groceries from the car. Going through the other two entrances with bags is really annoying and inconvenient. I instead waited for a Container Store Elfa sale and paid the store consultant to remodel my existing panty.

The same goes for painting walls in a house. To choose a color you need to put large swatches of different colors on the wall and live with them for a week. Colors change throughout the day as the sunlight coming into the room changes. You can buy small pots called tester pots for that purpose. When we painted our bedroom blue in our last house we did that. It turns out our favorite choice looked awful on the wall at bedtime.

My final suggestion is to join the Gardenweb forums on the website Houzz and post your reno plans there. They provide the best invaluable and forthright advice regarding such matters. Their advice could end up saving you time, money and headaches.

Thanks for the link to the forums, I’ll deginitely check that out. I don’t really plan to add or remove anything that isn’t already there. The space is fine, I just hate the countertops, backsplash, bathroom tiles, carpet etc.

I don’t need to live in the space to know I hate brown lol. Any changes to actual spaces would wait for sure. Id rather have my bathroom and kitchen torn out before I move all my stuff in.

At least that’s what I’m thinking now.
 
This thread is both informative and fascinating.

DH and I are considering buying a house and do a lot of looking on Zillow. One thing that flummoxes me is the property tax. Zillow lists the amount of property taxes going back several years and sometimes I'll see the taxes are, say $2,000/year, except 3 or 4 years ago they were $34,000 or some other huge amount. If I'd seen this only once, I'd've thought it was a typo, but I see this quite often. Is this real? Because the thought of being hit with a property tax of that magnitude sometimes in the future is daunting, to say the least.

Thanks to anyone who knows the answer to this. And of course, the history of property taxes is something important for anyone about to purchase a house to consider.
 
This thread is both informative and fascinating.

DH and I are considering buying a house and do a lot of looking on Zillow. One thing that flummoxes me is the property tax. Zillow lists the amount of property taxes going back several years and sometimes I'll see the taxes are, say $2,000/year, except 3 or 4 years ago they were $34,000 or some other huge amount. If I'd seen this only once, I'd've thought it was a typo, but I see this quite often. Is this real? Because the thought of being hit with a property tax of that magnitude sometimes in the future is daunting, to say the least.

Thanks to anyone who knows the answer to this. And of course, the history of property taxes is something important for anyone about to purchase a house to consider.

It could have been taxed for just the property and then someone built or improved the land and that would increase the tax . The first year after we built our current home ( two years ago ) the tax was for just the land and the next year it was taxed with the house on it .
 
This thread is both informative and fascinating.

DH and I are considering buying a house and do a lot of looking on Zillow. One thing that flummoxes me is the property tax. Zillow lists the amount of property taxes going back several years and sometimes I'll see the taxes are, say $2,000/year, except 3 or 4 years ago they were $34,000 or some other huge amount. If I'd seen this only once, I'd've thought it was a typo, but I see this quite often. Is this real? Because the thought of being hit with a property tax of that magnitude sometimes in the future is daunting, to say the least.

Thanks to anyone who knows the answer to this. And of course, the history of property taxes is something important for anyone about to purchase a house to consider.

You may also want to check homes that have not been built yet because sometimes you can get new build cheaper then a older home and without their problems . I would check with builders that are starting new neighborhoods or roads . We paid less for our new home then on the road beside us in the highest selling neighborhood and the older homes were not built as well but because the the area are still selling at high prices .
 
I've found that Zillow isn't always very accurate. I would check on property tax assessments directly with the house's appraisal district.
 

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