What type of home should I be looking at?
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What suits your needs?
When you think about the big decisions you make in your life, buying a home is right up there. Where we live both defines and is defined by the lifestyle and future choices we want to make. Choosing a property that benefits your well-being, work opportunities, and family goals is the best first step in your journey. Our in-depth needs assessment is designed to tease out these nuances and give you an insightful action plan to prioritise your search criteria.
Where?
Looking for a jumping-off point near the mountains? Or a commutable distance to work? In the ven diagram of life, choosing a location that fits every need and want is really difficult, but we are here to help you break down the decision into manageable steps. We’re experts in the areas that we serve and are able to give information on the lifestyle pros and cons of each area, as well as an in-depth assessment of the historical and future real estate market. This way we will find the perfect balance between lifestyle and financial benefit.
What?
Properties come in all shapes and sizes, each one is unique and beautiful in its own way. We’ll spend some time figuring out the best property size and style for you based on the outcome of our needs assessment.
Condo or apartment
Refers to a form of legal ownership as opposed to a style of construction. Condominiums can be high-rise residential buildings, townhouse complexes, individual houses, and lowrise residential buildings. Condominiums are also known as Stratas in British Columbia.
Rowhouse or townhouse
One of several types of single-family homes joined by common walls. It offers less privacy than a single-family detached home but still provides a separate outdoor space. These homes can cost less to buy and maintain.
Detached house
The most popular style and the most solid investment. It’s a free-standing home that sits on its own lot offering a greater degree of privacy. In Canada, owning a detached, single-family home is simply not an option for many buyers, especially first-time buyers.
Semi-detached house
Often referred to as a Half Duplex, is a single-family home that is joined to another by a common wall. It can offer many of the advantages of a single-family detached home and is usually less expensive to buy and maintain.
Do you have a larger real estate project in mind?
Houses with renovation potential
Buying a fixer-upper is a great way to shape a home with your own vision or as a way of generating profit. For some, it may even be the only entry into an expensive real estate market. Pay careful attention to the type and volume of work required, a home requiring cosmetic updates will be significantly less expensive than one that needs major structural changes. You’ll be surprised at how a little can go a long way with a renovation project and whatever your intentions are, we’ll be on hand to help you find the right home in need of a bit of care and attention.
Houses with land
Homes that come with more than 1 acre of land offer you and your family freedom and space. In the Okanagan, you’re also likely searching for the possibility of growing fruit trees, vines, or keeping animals. Any vision you have for the utilisation of this land must be matched by the appropriate zoning. For example, you might want to build a second home on the property, but it may not be within the designated use of land.
Land zoned for residential use
By purchasing a land lot you have the freedom to start with a blank slate. If you’ve ever dreamed of architecting your own home or you have a specific development project in mind, a land lot that has been zoned for residential use could be for you. Once built, you can live in the property, rent it out, or sell it on for a profit.
Land zoned for commercial use
The Okanagan is world-renowned for its production of fruit, grapevines, and vegetables. Perhaps you’re looking to enter the world of wine with your own vineyard, or would like to grow on behalf of another winery. Hobby farms and orchards are all within the possibilities too with land zoned for commercial use.
What budget do you have?
The next step in assessing your needs is to understand how large of a mortgage (if any) you can afford. We will determine how much mortgage you may be comfortable with and the potential price range of your future home. There are many factors that influence mortgage affordability, but the basic first steps are to quantify down payment, income, and expenses.
By assessing your total household income, how much you’ve saved for a down payment, and your monthly expenses (car payments, loan payment, living expenses, and so on), plus new expenses you’d take on (property taxes, condo fees, utilities), you can get a reasonable estimate. It is always best to speak to financial experts on this matter too, luckily for you we have a bunch saved on speed dial!
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