Should you buy it if you don't love it?

[BubbeSue]

We found a house that our realtor things is an awesome deal because it is really well priced in a great neighborhood. We saw it. It's ok. The size is more than enough. But I don't love the layout. And the former owners installed this checker-board ceramic tile in brown and cream in the living room/ dining room combo. We could rip it out, but not right away. It is at the top of our price range, so we won't have a lot of free cash to re-do it right away. I would have to live with it for a while. The house is clean and livable, and it is a GREAT neighborhood in an awesome school district. (This matters to us because we plan to use public school.) So what do you think, should we go for it even tho I don't love it?

I will add that the market here is really hot right now. Everything that is in decent shape in a good area is gone within a month. They have offers within a few days and then the 30 days to close so we gotta move if we are going to do it.

[Dabble]

There's something special about finding *the* house, the one that makes you go : and know that you want to live there. You aren't feeling it about this one.

On the other hand, there's something special about having a place to live too. How much pressure are you under to find a new place? If you have time on your side, you should probably wait. It would be an awful feeling to get unpacked in the place you settled for and then see your dream house come on the market.

Is it just the layout/aesthetics that are bothering you, or is it just not leaping out at you, period?

[mightymoo]

Nope, I don't think so. There are plenty of deals to be had in this market. We were looking two years ago, couldn't find anything we liked, all the ones that seemed okay in the high end of our price range still had tons of work I'd want to do either in needing fixing or just that I didn't like the layout or things like the tile, etc, it would bother me tremendously. We ended up buying a much much smaller less expensive house with the idea of living in it 6-7 years and then looking for a bigger one we liked.

We ended up buying a house two years later that we love love love. It wasn't something we were going to find again, so we jumped on it and sold our other house and bought this one. The location is ideal, the layout is wonderful, it has everything I want in a house. I'm so glad we didn't settle for something we didn't love at the top of our price range two years ago, because more expensive houses dropped significantly in price, our small house only dropped a little. In retrospect, I wish we had just rented until we found a house we loved instead of buying, but hindsight is 20/20 as they say.

That said, I wouldn't pass on a house because of something like tile if you loved everything else. First, the location and lot - those can't be changed at all, so you have to love them. Then the house layout, unless you think you can afford a big addition or remodel, you can't change these either, so you want to like that. But things like carpet, paint, tile - these are much more easily changed and I'd be okay with living with some ugly tile or whatnot if I loved the rest of the house.

[Ghislaine]

Given the reasons you state, I wouldn't go for it. The realtor would probably much prefer to get as much commission as he/she can but I wouldn't go for something at the high end of my price range unless it were in perfect for me, move-in condition (with the exception of paint maybe).

heh, I have to note that I'd probably love the tile as that would remind me of the homes in Europe where I've lived. Ideally it has radiant heat under that tile?

[Fuamami]

I wouldn't! And watch out for your realtor! The faster s/he gets you in a deal, the higher her/his hourly wage. And if it's the top of your price range, even better as s/he makes more commission.

[D_McG]

Originally Posted by Fuamami

I wouldn't! And watch out for your realtor! The faster s/he gets you in a deal, the higher her/his hourly wage. And if it's the top of your price range, even better as s/he makes more commission.

This. 100%!

[1growingsprout]

Originally Posted by Fuamami

I wouldn't! And watch out for your realtor! The faster s/he gets you in a deal, the higher her/his hourly wage. And if it's the top of your price range, even better as s/he makes more commission.

This and I'd be looking for a new relator BEFORE I looked at any more houses.

[jaidymama]

Here's the thing... think about how long you're going to live there overall. IS this the community you will want for 10 years? If so, some ugly tile may not matter as much as the community. Although if you absolutely don't like the layout that could annoy you forever. And if it is too much for your budget then would that put a hardship on your family?

Can you take a look again at the layout? Is the layout completely wrong for you? Is it something you could easily alter? If it's just slightly bothersome, perhaps you could get used to it, but if it's way off then it might not be worth living in a house that annoys you.

Bottom line for me is to consider the things you can change versus the things you can't... You can't change the way a neighborhood is, but you can eventually change out tile. The realtor might be right that the house is priced well, but that won't do anything for you if you don't enjoy living there.

[jaidymama]

Originally Posted by Ghislaine

Given the reasons you state, I wouldn't go for it. The realtor would probably much prefer to get as much commission as he/she can but I wouldn't go for something at the high end of my price range unless it were in perfect for me, move-in condition (with the exception of paint maybe).

heh, I have to note that I'd probably love the tile as that would remind me of the homes in Europe where I've lived. Ideally it has radiant heat under that tile?

I agree with this... I would only go for my high end price range if it were something I loved. However, I don't know your area... and if the neighborhood is great... that's irreplaceable.

But I do think it sounds like you don't want it.

[grniys]

Nope. It's a buyer's market and there are deals everywhere, don't forget that.

I'd be finding a new realtor asap since it doesn't sound like this one cares about you finding the right home so much as his/her pay.

I would not buy a home- especially in this market when God only knows if you'll be able to sell if you choose to- that I didn't absolutely love and want to live in happily for several years. There's just no way.

Sellers are willing to bend over backwards to get rid of their houses. Hold out for something you love, love, love. You won't regret it.

[justamama]

I would. I did. And there our things about my house I hate! The kitchen that needs major updating. The bathroom's "psychiatric ward grey" paintjob. Low-efficiancy appliances. An uneven chair rail along one of the main walls. Not my first choice for location, but my second (and has distinct advantages over my first, even if I don't care for it).

But...it's home now, 8 months later. I couldn't imagine being anywhere else right now. We don't plan on being here forever, but until we can afford some land, this is right where we belong. We work with what we have, changing what we can as we go. Sometimes, the things you dislike now grow on you and you come to love them. Just not creepy grey walls.

Honestly, though, in our situation this was the best home our price range, it had what we were looking for (though not the condition we may have wanted it in), and we needed out of our previous living situation ASAP. So we settled. But I'd never consider it settling anymore.

[Shakti77]

I'd probably wait. I want to be totally sure when I buy a house. Not go in with the feeling that maybe I shouldn't have bought this house. That's just me.

If the tile is the only thing that is bothering you, then maybe you can put a large room-sized rug in that room... What about the layout? Can you live with it? Maybe you can write down what features of the house you don't like and what features are very important in the house that you are looking to buy. That will give you answers to whether you want to buy this one of not.

Buying a house is such an exciting thing. Goodluck!

[EFmom]

Ignore the realtor's opinion. She doesn't have to live there and she gets paid if you buy it.

As to whether or not I'd buy it, it all has to do with your market. Our home purchases are heavily influenced by school district and neighborhood. We've done pretty well, even with our current house.

If I felt that I'd not come across a better house in a neighborhood I love, then I'd probably do it. The floor isn't much of an issue. If you are at all handy, you can fix this a few years down the road for a reasonable amount of money. Laminate or floating hardwood are really easy to do yourself, for example.

The layout is different. You're not going to be able to change this so easily. If you hate it, you're going to hate living there for a long time. My MIL bought a small ranch house 50 years ago and raised 5 kids in it. She hated every minute of that house and still does. I don't know that I could live that way. On the other hand, she lived in a neighborhood with excellent schools, which was great, but they really could have afforded to upgrade at some point and stay in the neighborhood. I've also lived in houses that don't have the perfect layout, but I've been OK with it. But a layout I hate, I don't think I'd buy.

[Maddy123]

I wouldn't! You should LOVE it with all your heart before you buy it!

Of course, no one can really say but you...

Good luck. House hunting is stressful, but it's also fascinating to imagine yourself in different places.

[CameronsMama]

This is a hard question to answer for someone else. We bought a house we didn't totally love, but most of the things we didn't love are easily fixable, but my dh is pretty handy and my fil is a contractor, so what we consider an easy fix might be very different from what others think. I agree with pps to consider what you can and can't change, and to think about your priorities. You may decide that the layout is worth dealing with to live in your ideal community. You might feel that no community is worth living in a house you don't love. That's up to you (Not your realtor) to decide. I wouldn't let cosmetic issues stop me from buying a place though, even if it takes you a while, you can change it eventually.

[Ola_]

Originally Posted by justamama

So we settled. But I'd never consider it settling anymore.

Me too. DH and I have very different tastes so we were quite torn on which house to buy. We ended up getting the one he liked (though it did have some good attributes such as lot size and good neighbourhood/location). The layout was not at all what I had in mind (it's a backsplit, I wanted a 2-level home) but it turned out to work really well for us.

So I did settle. I didn't love the house when we bought it, but I sure do now. But decide based on the market, finances, and your gut feeling, rather than what the realtor says.

[Om Girl]

Don't buy a house just because it's a good buy in the right neighborhood. Take your time, you'll know when you find a house that's perfect for you. Minor cosmetic details can be changed but it sounds like you don't like the layout of the house either and that's something that's not easily or in-expensively changed.

I agree, find a new realtor...look at every house in your targeted neighborhood and wait until you find on that's "perfect" for you.

[lucyem]

I see no reason to find a new realtor based on the initial post. It sounds like she is giving her opinion. I looked at many houses and my agent often said "this is a good deal" or "this would work". Agents sell houses and even a good one has interest in a sale going through. Now if you feel pressure then by all means find a new one.

As for buying what you do not love, well that depends. When we bought our house we had 3 choices. This was last month. In order to get into the town we wanted and have land for our horses we had 3 choices. The house was not the priority. Location & land were.

If you hate cosmetic stuff and can see the layout could be changed without too much and the town/area is where you want to be then consider it.

Where I see the issue is spending more then you want on something it sounds like you do not even what to deal with. Thats where I would advise you to keep looking. I know your market is different. Here in the northeast houses tend to not be put on the market in the winter, especially if someone needs to worry about not moving during the school year. If you have time, wait.

[jtsmom]

If you have to ask, then it isn't the right house for you.

[jtsmom]

Oh, also. If you don't like the layout already, then my guess is that it wouldn't work for you. Cosmetics are one thing, but you can't easily change the layout of a house. And it's all about the layout, baby. You can have all the space in the world, but if it doesn't flow right for your family, then I'd keep looking.