The first thing I must establish, the first question I would answer if I was buying downtown right now is this:

What are my goals with this new home?

That might sound like a stupid question, or it might sound like something that doesn’t matter, but the answer to this question is huge.  By figuring out exactly what my goals are I can identify what I need to do in order to make a wise decision.  Let me explain.

Is this house something I’m going to sell someday?  Is this house something I’m going to gift to my children when I die?  This alone will greatly change my plans.  If I’m not going to gift the house it can only mean one thing—-one day I am going to sell.  If I know I am going to sell then I better well plan that I’ll be selling someday.  And the best way to ensure that I can sell when I want is to make sure I have bought something that will sell!

Next, I need to figure out when that someday will be.  I’m not saying March 8, 2010 is the day I will sell, but what is my current plan?  Do I plan on this being a short term move, or is it something I’m going to keep for more than say 5 years.  Do I even know how long I will probably live here?  By establishing a time frame I can see how much attention I must pay to the market to ensure two things:

1. That I can actually sell (amazingly there are many people that realize when the time comes to sell that they cannot).
2. That I can sell for a profit (again, this is not a guarantee as many people are learning right now).

To me establishing my goals is much more important than the exact place I will live.  If I’m going to buy something short term I know that I need to look for a better deal than the perfect place for me.  That is, unless I have extra money to throw away (and if that’s the case why not donate some of it to me?)  If I’m going to keep the property for a very long time the current and short term market don’t quite matter as much.  But that’s not to say that they do not matter–as you’ll soon learn.

By first establishing what your goals are you can do a better job of making a wise decision.  The one thing I see more people do than you’ll ever know is that they never plan to sell.  They know they won’t live somewhere very long, but they never have any thoughts as to how well their home will sell when they want to move.  If you think about this going in I promise you will save yourself a huge headache down the road.  What’s worse than wanting, or needing, to move and not being able to sell?

By answering this question you may find that you want to just “try out” downtown, or you may decide that you want to move very soon and see that renting is a better choice for you right now.  That’s nothing to be ashamed of at all.  If you take the extra time to plan out your goals you will not only come out far ahead, but save yourself some major headaches!

Again, the first question I must answer is “What are my goals?” Every purchase must start with that question being answered.

Stay tuned tomorrow and find out the 2nd question I’d require the answer to.  This will also include why I must have this answer and give some examples downtown as to why this is important.  (i.e. DRAMA on the way!!!)

This series will be fun, but most of all it’s designed to help you make the best decision you can.  Spending several hundred thousand dollars is a much bigger decision than people try to make it.  We’re here to help you make the best decision of your life.  Until tomorrow–figure out exactly what you plan to do with your downtown home………Establish some goals, and we’ll start to get your plan in place to make your next move your best move.