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Post by **GypsyGirl** on Jun 11, 2021 18:18:56 GMT
even rent for a bit. If/when you decide that you love the area, you can take your time finding a perfect house. Not that moving twice is ideal, but it's one path to consider. Exciting time! Growing up we moved quite a bit for dad's job. My parents always rented first, then bought a home after they figured out the lay of the land. I've read several articles on retirement that suggest this same thing. There is no way to really know a town/location until you spend at least 6 months to a year there. We know of several people who bought what they thought was their final retirement home, only to be selling and moving just a couple of years later due to things they didn't like about the town/area.
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Post by bc2ca on Jun 11, 2021 18:24:05 GMT
You can always renovate/extend/ decorate the house, but you can’t do much about the town. Definitely town first for me. I've never lived in a dream house, although we've always upgraded and liked our homes. I have loved almost every neighborhood/towns we have lived. The two that are at the bottom of the list were rentals when we were new to the areas. In your situation, I'd pick the town and wait for the right property to come along.
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Post by catmom on Jun 11, 2021 18:34:28 GMT
DH and I had this exact conversation last year when we were buying our house. We chose town and neighbourhood and are so glad we did.
Our last house had a fantastic backyard with pool and hot tub but everything was a drive and we realized we had completely unplugged from the community. We now live in an adorable tri-level townhouse near downtown where we can walk to grocery stores, restaurants, community centre, the theatre, the lake etc and we LOVE it. Best decision we made.
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Post by ~summer~ on Jun 11, 2021 18:41:58 GMT
I would definitely rent in an area before buying. That’s my plan.
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Post by busy on Jun 11, 2021 18:58:12 GMT
even rent for a bit. If/when you decide that you love the area, you can take your time finding a perfect house. Not that moving twice is ideal, but it's one path to consider. Exciting time! Growing up we moved quite a bit for dad's job. My parents always rented first, then bought a home after they figured out the lay of the land. I've read several articles on retirement that suggest this same thing. There is no way to really know a town/location until you spend at least 6 months to a year there. We know of several people who bought what they thought was their final retirement home, only to be selling and moving just a couple of years later due to things they didn't like about the town/area. I have several friends who relocated for various reasons to areas they didn't know well. Only one who bought right off the bat felt like they ended up where they would have chosen with more time in the area. The rest who bought immediately wished they'd waited and rented for a year. Those who rented first all ended up either moving elsewhere because they didn't like living there as much as they thought, or bought where it was the best fit for them, once they knew more about the area.
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Post by ScrapbookMyLife on Jun 11, 2021 19:03:35 GMT
For me, location would be the top priority. In a safe area, close to stores, medical facilites and the things I like to do.
For me, I follow the theory and philosophy of "home is where my heart is". As long as I am content and my heart and soul are quiet, happy and at peace........I can live in any type of dwelling. My preference would be a single story studio type place. In general am good with whatever dwelling crosses my path. Anywhere I live, I make it "me" with my decor and style.
If money were no object, I would live on the road the majority of the time. I would have a small home base(permanent address), as that would make life easier legally speaking(drivers license, mailbox, etc...). I would have a smaller sized RV, and would wander and change locations whenever I wanted to.
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Post by MichyM on Jun 11, 2021 19:08:36 GMT
For me, 100% the area (town). I can't imagine having the perfect house in an area I was not fond of.
And I totally agree with those who say to rent for a while before looking at homes to purchase!
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Post by anniefb on Jun 11, 2021 19:50:20 GMT
Both and town/city possibly more important, particularly in terms of - the facilities it has (including shops, healthcare, culture and community), general good quality of life eg easy access to nature and the beach (here in New Zealand at least), general safety - is there a lot of crime etc, is it a place where I already have friends/family or at least know a few people, what is the cost of living in that location and the usual climate?
There are a few places in New Zealand where I would definitely not choose to live, even though property prices are lower than in Auckland because they are pretty isolated, have few shops, no public transport and poor healthcare facilities, or other significant problems like a lot of gang violence.
Personally, I have already made the decision not to relocate from Auckland when I retire. I plan to stay more or less in the same community and downsize my house.
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Post by maryland on Jun 11, 2021 20:13:30 GMT
In your situation, I agree with you.
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Post by longtimenopea on Jun 11, 2021 20:27:08 GMT
For now: our school district. For the future: the availability of the amenities we really want.
Those factors outweigh either house or town for us. I can be happy in lots of kinds of towns or most any kind of house, but there’s no substitute for having what we really want and need nearby. It would be hard for me to justify - for example - moving to a more rural community without great healthcare and without great shopping and culture and recreation. The town itself is less essential for either of us.
I grew up in a place that just didn’t have enough going for it. You had to drive 20-30 miles to do most things besides buy basic groceries at the Food City. That’s why amenities are so high on our list of factors to choose our next location. We are very spoiled here and have everything we want, except the absence of winter.
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Post by Susie_Homemaker on Jun 11, 2021 20:37:04 GMT
I'd find the town/location/area that I want to be in first, then find somewhere to live there. You can change the house, you can't change the area/town.
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Post by monklady123 on Jun 11, 2021 20:56:28 GMT
Honestly, I would choose the town over the house. In fact this is what dh and I did when we bought this house... We could have bought a MUCh bigger house out west from DC. But we settled on a very small house with a tiny kitchen, 5 minutes from DC, a bit more during rush house (dh usually drives for about 12 minutes, lol). We have quick access to everything DC offers, plus our own town, and all the neighboring ones in Northern VA. A quick jump onto the Beltway and we can be in Maryland.
But the caveat here is that I don't really care about my house. I would have liked a front porch but I just use the front yard as my porch so that works most of the time. Not in the rain of course, lol... And I'd probably like a bigger kitchen although since I hate to cook I'd hate to waste that space. And, I would have liked my kids to have bigger bedrooms. But two of her closest friends had to share a bedroom with a sibling all the way until they went to college.
So in the end I don't ever regret buying this house for the location, instead of buying a bigger/"better" house farther out in Virginia.
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Post by Crack-a-lackin on Jun 11, 2021 20:58:47 GMT
The three most important things in real estate: location, location, location. I think that’s it for me. I would be more willing to make compromises on the house than the location. That doesn’t mean I don’t have deal-breakers for my house though. When I bought my current house I made a list of features and ranked their importance which helped in my search, but if a house ticked off every box but wasn’t in an area I wanted I would not buy it.
Is it possible that your DH meant all of the towns you were discussing were equally fine with him, so as long as the house was what you wanted he would be fine? Not that any town in the state is ok, but any town on the list you’ve already discussed.
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Post by Zee on Jun 11, 2021 21:12:11 GMT
I'm going to say house because I lived in a tiny town with no stoplights, one bar, one Casey's, one hairdresser, one cop, a church, and a Legion hall. I loved it even though there wasn't much to do, but I could drive 20-30 minutes to get to everything I needed. No crime, very safe and homey, and I loved my home there.
The last two times I moved I didn't know much about the towns, I just went with the house (though obviously I wouldn't have bought a house in an actually shitty unsafe area). No complaints. I can drive to whatever I want but I don't require much.
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Deleted
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Sept 21, 2024 2:39:02 GMT
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Post by Deleted on Jun 11, 2021 21:13:03 GMT
I would put town slightly ahead of house. We know what area we really want to move to. We're watching the houses that are coming on the market to see if there's any we want to jump on.
DH is in love with my aunt's property, minus the crazy curvy hilly driveway she has. Unfortunately she loves it too and doesn't want to move any time soon, so we're looking for similar properties, not necessarily in her area.
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Post by Darcy Collins on Jun 11, 2021 21:25:02 GMT
I'll add I think it's extremely easy to think the town isn't as important when you're still working and commuting into a city. All of the restaurants/shopping/amenities of the city are easily accessible as you're their 5+ days a week. Things change post retirement when/if you aren't interested in commuting into the city for those things. If the commute is extremely reasonable and you don't mind going there for your needs, the local town might not matter as much.
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kate
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Post by kate on Jun 11, 2021 21:31:48 GMT
The three most important things in real estate: location, location, location. I agree. Neighborhood is so important to me! Not the fanciness of the zip code, but the feel of the streets, the kinds of shops and restaurants that are around, etc. I love that the bodega guy knows how I take my coffee, and I love that we ask about each other's kids.
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Post by Spongemom Scrappants on Jun 11, 2021 21:48:26 GMT
I don’t love where I live, but I love my husband. We bought a fabulous home here a year and a half ago because we’ll be here another 10 years or so until he retires. (It’s his hometown as well.) I wish the house were elsewhere but I can make the best of it. I’ve moved throughout my childhood and adult years so I’m used to finding my own way any place I live.
After he retires though? We’ll be having some serious negotiations about where we want to be then. He is on board with the idea of moving. We’re just all over the place on where that will be.
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Post by epeanymous on Jun 11, 2021 22:02:15 GMT
Location. I would live in a tiny cruddy place if I loved the location over a really nice house in a location that didn’t suit.
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Post by birukitty on Jun 11, 2021 22:15:34 GMT
Having the experience of living in 23 different places during my life, my answer for myself is 100% town, then house. I've live in all kinds of homes from trailer parks (when I was young and we were poor) to apartments, to townhouses and to single family homes, not to mention living on 2 different small farms during my teen years. I've lived in the city (in Germany), in the country (in the boondocks while we lived on the farms it took 30 minutes of driving to get to the grocery store), and in towns (small and large).
In the past 25 years we've lived in the same single family house in Annapolis, MD. Of all of the places I've lived this town has been my favorite (other than Germany). There is the sailing that is everywhere you look. We are right up against the Chesapeake Bay-if you are at my mailbox you can look down the street and see the water. In our 100 year old community we have very old trees and a beach with the Chesapeake Bay. People are friendly here. In 25 minutes you can be either in Baltimore or DC which helps with things like airports and medical care if you need specialized hospitals. I'm not sure I want to retire here though. My ideal place to retire would be St. John USVI but that's got drawbacks too like medical care and cost.
So for me it's 100% town first. I can always manage to find a great house to buy once I've found an amazing town to settle in. In fact, that's the fun part. If I can't find one available right away, I'd rent for awhile and check back every month or so. Or I'd consider building. But location has to come first.
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peabay
Prolific Pea
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Post by peabay on Jun 11, 2021 22:25:30 GMT
Town is more important to me. I want to like the house I live in, but I wouldn't want my dream house in a cultural desert.
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Post by lisacharlotte on Jun 12, 2021 2:25:51 GMT
Location, location, location. A great house in a lousy location isn’t a great house. A lousy house in a great location can become a great house. One you can control, one you can’t.
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Post by quinlove on Jun 12, 2021 2:51:26 GMT
Location, location, location. A great house in a lousy location isn’t a great house. A lousy house in a great location can become a great house. One you can control, one you can’t. Yes This !!! Isn’t that the old realtor saying. 3 most important things about a house - - - Location Location Location
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Post by refugeepea on Jun 12, 2021 3:25:22 GMT
I would care more about what the town had to offer for my needs rather than being part of the community. House would be first.
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Post by crazy4scraps on Jun 12, 2021 3:40:56 GMT
For us both were important. We live in a smallish city that itself doesn’t have much, but it’s very close to everything we need in the neighboring cities. Our house is located in a neighborhood but the lots are all huge. We’re close enough to several major highways to make getting around easy but far enough away that we don’t have to deal with smog or noise. At this stage of our lives the most important thing is the school district, which the pandemic has really hammered home just how big of a deal it is to have decent schools.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 12, 2021 7:29:17 GMT
I would put town first. If the environment, facilities and the locations of a town is not good or not suitable for my needs it wouldn't matter how lovely my house was it would be in the wrong place IMO.
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joelise
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Post by joelise on Jun 12, 2021 9:21:02 GMT
Location, location, location. A great house in a lousy location isn’t a great house. A lousy house in a great location can become a great house. One you can control, one you can’t. I agree with this. You can change a house, you can’t change a town.
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Post by Patter on Jun 12, 2021 9:22:02 GMT
Location. I would live in a tiny cruddy place if I loved the location over a really nice house in a location that didn’t suit. Yes, I initially said both but now I realize that location comes first. We had a beautiful house in TX. Couldn't have asked for more. I disliked where we were. For 14 years I grumbled. We were very blessed there but the location was not me. While the house is a VERY close 2nd (because houses and cars are my thing), location must come first. So, there you have it. I changed my answer. LOL!
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Post by Lindarina on Jun 12, 2021 9:57:16 GMT
Location comes first! You can always remodel a house.
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Post by whipea on Jun 12, 2021 13:44:57 GMT
Where I live, South Florida we do not really have what many of you would refer to as towns. It is hundreds of miles of suburban sprawl with different names. There are some areas that are less "sprawly", more spread out but they are all somewhat the same with the exception of economic and sometimes age demographics. Of course there are high crime areas, but they can be right next to highly desirable and very expensive neighborhoods.
If you are referring to house versus distance to stores, medical and amenities I would choose area, neighborhood then house last. As stated by others houses can be modified, areas and neighborhood cannot.
Funny, I live in what is considered he boonies. It is a neighborhood, but it is at least 10 miles from any significant commercial areas. But being South Florida, development is encroaching and at the very moment the land one mile north west is being built up with about 3000 new houses and a commercial area. Every time I drive by, I see more and more structures, popping up like they are using magic to build. Within a few years this will no longer be the boonies, just more of the same.
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