House Size: How Big a Home Do You Need?

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House Size: How Big a Home Do You Need?

Finally, you’re ready to be a homeowner. Yay!

You’ve saved up a sizeable down payment (if taking out a mortgage) or the entire amount (if buying in cash). Your credit score is in the right place. Generally, everything is looking up.

You can’t wait to move into your own home.

Just one little detail left to sort out, though: the house size.

Picking a house size might seem like an afterthought, but it’s one of the biggest decisions you’ll make when you’re looking to buy a home. The size will, in fact, impact the cost of the home and your overall experience. Get it wrong and you’ll find yourself in the market after a couple of months or years.

So, how do you choose the right size? Here’s how:

Your Current Living Needs

Of course, you want a house that meets your current living needs.

If you’ve got a family, for instance, you need a house with an adequate number of bedrooms and other facilities that will support the family.

If you’ve got one car, you need a house with at least a parking spot for the car. If you’ve got two rides, you need one with enough space for the cars.

Your Future Living Needs

While it’s natural to take your current living needs into account, some prospective homebuyers forget to factor in their future living needs.

If you’re a growing family, for example, or you plan to have more kids in the future, you need to go with a house size that can accommodate your growing family needs. It should have additional bedrooms or if not, have enough space where you can build an extension.

If you’re a car collector, you’ll probably add more cars to your collection. You need to buy a home with a big garage or outdoor space where you can park your cars.

What if you don’t know what your future looks like? Perhaps you don’t quite know whether you want to marry and have kids or not. Well, it’s advisable to err on the side of caution. It’s better to buy a bigger house that you won’t need in the future than buy a small house that will need upsizing.

Your Homeownership Plans

Is the home you’re buying your forever home or you plan to upgrade later on?

If you have the answer to this question, it’s easy to determine how much of a house you need right now. You’ll start looking at houses for sale knowing exactly what you need. 

For instance, if this is your first home and you plan to upgrade later on in life, you can do with a house that suits just your current living needs. But if it’s your forever home, it’s important that you buy a house that will satisfy you today and in the future. 

Choose the Right House Size

The home buying process is exciting, so exciting that you might end up with a house that doesn’t suit your needs. To avoid this from happening, it’s important to have a good handle on the house size you need. With this guide, you now know how to choose the right size.

Keep reading our blog for more homeownership tips.