Finding the perfect house, -part one

My wife and I have been searching for a new house for a few years now, we are looking to upgrade to something bigger.

We have found that it can be a time comsuming and frustrating process.

You see, there’s a lot of overpriced crap out there for several distinct reasons, and it’s taken us a long time to understand the market.

It’s notable that house’s don’t sell for the listed price, it’s typically about 0.9 of that number according to my own research. if they are serious about selling, the owners will negotiate.

Typically there are

-Properties that have been recently subdivided, and the developer wants the maximum amount to fund their next project.
these places typically have some expensive or unfixable problem.

-Properties that haven’t been looked after and need lots of work, but they still want that premium price. These places typically have rotten window sills, and a rotten outside deck. A spongy floor around the bathroon/laundry is also common.

-Retired couples who are moving to a resthome or similar. These places can be neglected due to there health but generally,  it’s a more honest option with few things to catch you out.

-The couple that did some renovations themselves. Some know what they are doing, some don’t. One example had a basement dug out underneath it, where they couldn’t even bother to get the floor level. None of it was up to a good standard, and if the local council get wind of it, you have a problem.

-House flippers.. these houses are generally well presented and setup for the  typical house buyer, or what they think the market wants. I avoid these houses like the plague. There’s typically a whole bunch of starry eyed investors looking to buy it, who will start trying to out do each other on price.

The search continues….