Defining Your Non-Negotiables When Buying

What does it mean to define your non-negotiables? Well, what do you absolutely need in your new home, is it the driving reason for your move? Further to this, what is a luxury or inclusion that you can probably live without? Defining your non-negotiables will help you to purchase a property that will meet your needs and will help negate any feelings of buyer’s regret.

Common Non-Negotiables

Natural light is a big one for most people, no one really wants to live in a dark (and in most cases cold) property, simply, it’s just not enjoyable. Having enough natural light is also beneficial to your health as it helps to keep mould and moisture at bay. Having 2 toilets is also a common must-have for couples at the least, bathroom battles are fun for no one.

Privacy is another value people seek when property hunting, the degree of which is subject to individual preference but can also be managed with privacy screens in certain cases.

Outlook and street appeal are also on people’s lists for something they have a steadfast opinion on. If you’re looking to purchase an apartment, you most likely would prefer to look out over the street or landscape opposed to someone else’s home. We better not forget storage! Making sure you have enough room in your new home to store everything from linen to your book collection is a definite non-negotiable.

What Can You Compromise On?

If you’ve got too many items on your non-negotiables list, you may make it very difficult for yourself to find ‘the right’ property for you, or, your search could be never-ending.

Something you may be able to compromise on is the number of bedrooms, is it 100% necessary that you have 2 spare rooms in your home? If not fully utilised they are an expensive waste, plus, it’s another room to keep clean! The same goes for a large backyard, unless you have a large dog or kids that will need and use the space, this will cost extra. Keep in mind that every extra square metre will cost you!

Do you have a specific suburb in mind? It is worth checking out the available properties in surrounding suburbs too if you can quite get your foot in the door or the current properties on the market just aren’t meeting your needs.

If you’re dreaming of a flowing open-plan home, keep in mind that renovations can remedy this if the property you have found checks all your other boxes.

The Final Decision

When it comes to your property journey, the key thing you need to keep in mind is if the property and location will make you happy. If you have compromised too much and need to undergo significant renovations when you’re not in the position to do so, you may be living in a home you don’t love for a while. Additionally, if you have compromised on location for a bargain you need to keep in mind that your home is stuck there, you can always make changes to a home, but you can’t pick it up and move it.

When going through your non-negotiables it should help define the kind of property you’re looking for. Although we recommend being as realistic as possible when it comes to what you really need in a new home, don’t compromise so much that you end up making a purchase you regret.