According to recent research data, 97% of home buyers now spend at least part of their property journey looking for homes online. With so many people shopping for homes on the internet, it’s essential to approach this part of the home search as strategically as any other. That’s why we’ve assembled a few of the top online home search tips to simplify your house hunting and help to ensure that you find a home that aligns with your needs and budget.
Online Home Search Tips
Know What You Want: Whether you’re looking for a home with the help of a REALTOR® or just skimming through listings online, there are a lot of homes out there, and you’ll lose a lot of time looking at houses that aren’t right for you if you don’t have a good idea of what your non-negotiables are. This can be anything that matters the most to you, whether it’s the number of bedrooms, the age of the house, the location, or even the size of the yard.
Set a Budget: In addition to knowing what you want, you’ll want to know what you can afford. There’s nothing more disheartening than finding a home that looks perfect only to find that it’s outside your price range. Setting a budget will help you filter out properties that are outside your reach so that you’re only looking for houses that are a real possibility. When determining how much you can spend, remember to factor in additional costs such as insurance, taxes, and HOA fees.
Check Out Virtual Tours: This is probably one of the best tips for online house hunting out there. Just as the internet makes it easy to look through numerous houses from the comfort of your own couch, many listings also offer 3D virtual tours that give you the feeling of “walking” through the home. This can give you a much better sense of the flow and layout of a home than individual photos ever could, and it will help you narrow down options before you visit the home in person.
Be Patient and Persistent: It may take a few tries before you find the perfect home. If you’re searching for homes online and keep finding duds, you may want to adjust the filters that you’re using in your search criteria. Don’t give up! The home of your dreams might be right around the corner!
Use Map Features: Online home search tools often include map features that can enable you to “explore” the neighborhood around your prospective home. This is especially useful if you’re looking to live in a particular area or near a specific school. Map features not only help you find and compare other homes in the area but can give you a feel for the community. You’ll find this to be a big help in narrowing down which homes are right for you.
If you’re looking for a home in Sandbrock Ranch, for example, we have an online home search feature that is the perfect place to start. From there, you can check out the rest of our website to get a feel for our community, our “Live True” lifestyle, and the neighborhood that you’ll soon call home!
