Donna Littlefield, Associate Real Estate Broker in Western New York

Consider These New Year’s Resolutions In Your Pursuit of Becoming a Homeowner

Buying a Home

Consider These New Year’s Resolutions In Your Pursuit of Becoming a Homeowner

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New Year’s resolutions are typically made each January, usually regarding jobs and weight loss, right? But what about those who want to accomplish something as big as becoming a homeowner? What are some New Year’s resolutions you can make to help you become a successful homeowner?

New Year’s Resolutions First things first: buying a home is a considerable financial investment. Therefore, you have to resolve to get into the habit of saving money rather than spending it on things you don’t really need. Here’s an small but good way to combat having to buy everything you see in a store that you like; wait a day and sleep on it, and if you determine the next day it’s something you “really need,” then get it, otherwise set that money aside for your savings account.

Related to the idea of saving money is this: build your credit history, repair damage to it, and get out of debt this year. By making payments on-time and in-full, you’re going to look attractive to mortgage lenders. They appreciate people with high credit scores– it tells them you’re “safe” to work with, because they see you can pay your bills!

Resolve to get to the point where your income is exceeding your expenses, such that you have enough money in the bank as a “cushion.” For instance, buying a house is a big investment, right? But it also requires maintenance, taxes, and unexpected problems that’ll need money to solve. Therefore, if you can start a “home maintenance” bank account where you put money away toward future needs, that’s a smart idea. You have to plan and prepare for expenses that come with owning and maintaining a house.

Finally, for the fun of it, make this year the year you learn how to do some “fix-it” things where you currently live. This could involve taking a book out from the library, watching YouTube videos, or asking a friend/relative to teach you how to do minor repairs. Learn some valuable new skills so eventually you don’t have to pay a lot of money for a professional repair person to come to your house charging $100 just to show up!

If you’re house hunting in Western New York, contact Donna Littlefield with any questions you have.

Factors to Consider When Selecting a Community to Live In

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Finding a Community to Live InIn real estate, it’s “location, location, location.” Why are some houses really expensive while others aren’t? Usually it depends on their location. There are other factors, but location matters most.

How do you decide what community to live in? You make a list of what you want around you, and then you have a real estate agent like Donna Littlefield help you find a neighborhood that meets those needs.

Most people want to live close to where they work. A commute that’s twenty minutes or less is ideal. Few people want to live somewhere that’s over an hour commute to their work, unless they’re willing to live far from a city simply because they value nature more than the convenience of having stores and lots of people nearby.

Consider a location’s amenities. People love living near parks– even if they don’t use them! There’s something nice about living near a park, which is a dedicated green space that helps “up” property values. Other neighborhood amenities to look for when deciding where to live include community pools for the summer, gyms for the winter, malls for shopping, and a nice variety of restaurants for when you don’t want to cook at home.

If you have kids or plan to have kids, then schools become a major factor in deciding where to settle. You can do some research to find out how certain schools rank in the region and discover the ideal ones.

Besides schools, parks, and amenities, the other major thing people care about is safety. How much crime does the area have? What kind of crimes happen there? Basically, no one wants to live in an area where their car will be broken into or they’ll be robbed on the street. They want to be in a well-lit place where neighbors look out for one another and they don’t have to fear for their life.

If you’re looking for a nice place to live in Western New York, contact Donna Littlefield at 716-578-1788 today. She can find you a great, safe location with quality schools, parks, and amenities nearby.