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When you outgrow your starter home and start looking longingly at local real estate listings it’s time to consider buying a family home. Maybe your family has expanded with the addition of children and pets or maybe you’ve just got a lot of stuff, whatever your reasons, when it’s time for an upgrade you can count on the advice of an experienced realtor to help you buy a family home. Many people compromise when they buy their first house because of the difficulty of getting a foot on that first rung of the property ladder. First homes are frequently condos, townhomes or small single family dwellings. After a few years (and often just as you need it) you will find that the equity you’ve gained in your first home can springboard you into a larger family home that is a better fir for your growing family. Upgrading buyers are often looking at single family homes; they offer more privacy (less worries about the screaming baby keeping the neighbours awake!) and space. You would probably enjoy a nice big yard for the kids to play in, your pets to run around in and maybe even a veggie garden to defray grocery costs. What about the neighborhood? Wouldn’t it be nice to get into an area where you: • Are close to amenities that you use frequently (parks, rec centres, shopping etc.); • Have a quick commute to your job, and • Are in the catchment area of excellent schools? You can get there - using the equity from your first house. You will undoubtedly face some challenges along the way, obviously you need to sell your house and realize enough funds to be able to afford that upgrade. Sometimes the greatest challenge lies in timing it all so that you don’t end up temporarily homeless or the proud owner of two homes (and two mortgages!). There are plenty of horror stories about people who have gotten themselves into a difficult situation by falling in love with and buying a family home before selling their starter home. Your realtor might advise against this course of action unless you can comfortably carry both mortgages, it can be very stressful and lead to your having to accept a lowball offer on your house to escape a crushing debt load. If you find your perfect family home before you sell your starter house go ahead and make an offer on it, just make it contingent upon the sale of your house, this common tactic is quite acceptable in all but the hottest real estate markets. Buying a family home or upgrade home is quite different than buying a starter house, with a unique set of challenges, but with the help of an experienced realtor you will be able to successfully negotiate this new chapter of your real estate experience. With professional guidance you can sell your house for a fair price, in a reasonable time frame, and find and purchase your new family home.
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