31 Mar Home is Where the Heart Is

The home buying process can, at times, be overwhelming and stressful. And that is understandable. This is where you are going to create a place to call your own, a place to be you, a place to feel safe…a home is where you will create the memories that will be with you always. A home is where you will gather with friends and family and celebrate life’s moments, big and small. This is YOUR home, it’s where your heart is.

It interesting that often real estate agents and lenders point out the potential financial benefit of owning a home, but the potential financial benefits are only part of home ownership. The emotional aspect isn’t often focused on or discussed enough, but it’s why we want to find the ‘perfect’ home. It’s why we look at so many houses. 

Let’s be honest, if it were all about the financial aspect of owning a home, then any ‘ol home would do. Just pick one and go for it. But it’s not just about the financial benefits, we know that life is going to unfold in this place and we want to find a home that will fit our personal and/or family needs. We want to be able to picture having our friends and family over to our home. We want to be able to envision where we will have our life’s celebrations. THIS is why we buy a house. THIS is why we stress over it more we’d like to admit. We want the best place for our kids to play in the yard or the perfect dining room for family gatherings. We want to be able to hear ourselves laughing with our family and friends as we walk through a house. This is this very detail that makes a house a home. 

When you are searching for a home, it’s easy to get caught up in the details of a house that don’t really matter. People often ask, how do you know it’s “the one”…as an agent, my response is ‘you’ll just know’. I can’t always explain it and there isn’t always a specific check list, you’ll just know. 

My advice when home shopping is be realistic about what you can afford and don’t worry about the finishes all being updated to the latest trends. Staying in a comfortable price point is what allows you to sit back and enjoy your friends and family vs. stressing over how you are going to make the mortgage payment. And having everything updated, well, those are the things you can change over time. And honestly, who cares if the kitchen hasn’t been totally updated – is the space right for your needs? 

Think about Grandma’s house (no offense Grandmas!)…or your parent’s house….or wherever some of your best memories were made. Now, think about the decor. Did it really matter that the wallpaper was not en vogue? Did you really care that the bathroom wasn’t a total spa experience. NO! Of course not. This is because the memories far outweigh the dated carpeting. [Of course the exception to this is carpet in bathrooms. For the good of all that is right in this world, remove any carpet in any bathroom. Please! Ok, sorry about that tangent…now back to regularly scheduled programming….]

Take a step back and spend time with the people that mean the most to you. Create some memories that will be cherished for a lifetime. Don’t worry about holding off on that house party until you update the bathroom or paint the living room… or whatever it is that is holding you back, don’t let it. I tend to stress over having a perfectly clean house when having guests, but someone once said to me don’t worry, no one will EVER remember how clean your house was, but they will remember how much fun they had! They said it’s like a wedding cake, the bride will stress over what the cake should look like and spend ridiculous amounts of money on a wedding cake…but guess what, almost no one will ever remember what that cake looked like weeks or years down the road. They were right. I barely remember what my wedding cake looked like.

So stop stressing about the details and start living life…always easier said than done, I know, I know. But let’s try to make that the focus this month and every month moving forward. Make this your goal for your home. Make it a place that is always open to friends and family, this is what people will remember…not the decor or how clean it was (or wasn’t).

If you are looking for a place to call your own, Hermann London has so many amazing agents that will be excited to walk you through the process without any pressures. And that is the key, you want an agent that will be an advocate and not pressure you into a home that is more than you are comfortably wanting to spend. So give us a call – a buyers consultation is FREE! We’ll give you all the information you need to set yourself on the right path to home ownership!