Buying A House = Dating
When I was looking to buy a house, I wrote about how I entirely agreed (but only after going through the process) with the general rule that you should look at six houses before you put down an offer. Today, CNNMoney has an article on getting your financial house in order before bidding and the article's "hook" got me thinking about how home buying is like dating...
NEW YORK (CNN/Money) - You've fallen in love for the first time. Your instincts tell you to follow your heart, make a commitment. But would that be wise? After all, it does cost $400,000.
Take out the last sentence (or depending on where you are, dating could cost you $400k over time) and it's entirely about dating and relationships, something most people are familiar with. Your first girlfriend/boyfriend is filled with puppy love where you two absolutely adore each other, you didn't know how you lived before meeting, and all that nice soft sappy stuff. You were happy and content and probably felt complete for the first time in your life. You wanted to spend all your time with that person. Then things don't work out, you break up, it hits you hard, and you move on. You go on some really good dates and then some really bad dates and eventually you find your match, settle down and live on. That's usually how it works (not right or wrong, just usual).
When you buy a house, chances are, if your agent understands you, you will probably like one of the first six houses you walk into. It's your first date and you might have succumbed to bit of puppy love... don't! You need to keep looking so you can tell the bad dates from the good ones and eventually, as you learn about yourself and what you like about a home, can make a true educated decision about which one you want to spend a significant amount of time in.
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