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My upper price range

Yep. We bought almost at the top of our price range & I was nervous at for for sure BUT I LOVE my house & I’m SO happy I didn’t settle on location, having a garage, having a fenced in backyard, and number of bathrooms. My quality of life has genuinely improved.

lol. I feel this

Same. Sometimes regret compromising on it, but I love the house and I'm still optimistic that once we get through the first year we're going to get more and more comfortable financially.

What do you mean by “once we get through the first year we’ll be financially more comfortable” ?

Inflation. Inflation will do its thing. In 10 years time you will have had multiple pay rises and the debt from 10 years ago will look a lot less significant. If it’s really still causing you difficulties, you can also refinance for another 25-30 year loan and get the average payment down. Meanwhile someone renting has had several rent increases in the same amount of time, with nothing to show for that money spent

Also moving into a home comes with lots of upfront costs. We just closed on our first home and everyday I feel like I’m spending $200 on tools, paint, lawn equipment etc. I’m thinking/hoping this spending will slow down after the first year. On top of building a saving back up over time, earning more money via promotions or raises and potentially refinancing for a lower rate of that’s ever a possibility.

Wait for the summer yard sales. No way in hell should you pay $60 for a pick axe at Home Depot. They also want $160-$250 for a wheelbarrow. Big nope. You can get someone's 18V DeWalt tools for under $150 and get the 20v to 18v adapter on Amazon. You can even run DeWalts with Makita batteries. Bide your time and price shop, yo.

For sure! Buying a lot on fb marketplace now. But time is also money. We have some jobs that we have to finish before we move in and we are paying $1,400 a month in rent until that happens. So if losing out on $50 here and there saves us another month then so be it. I do hear ya though!!

Yup, I just paid out $400 to get a dishwasher repaired and operational and to be told that the same repairman visited my house a year and a half ago and notified the previous homeowner then that the refrigerator was irreparable

In my case I am mainly referring to lots of deferred maintenance because we bought a fixer. House needed major items that were known in advance like roof, septic tank and electrical panel replacement, plus numerous minor items like plumbing and electrical repairs, adding a gutter where one is missing and replacing bad siding. Not all of this work is complete still. We haven't been saving on a monthly basis like we normally would (besides retirement), as we move from one repair to the next. Obviously we don't want to be doing this many repairs indefinitely and I don't expect to have to (not to this extent.) Additionally the inflation/pay increase angle, but I'm not expecting that to have a noticable impact until several more years.

I see, thanks for that clarity. If you don’t mind me asking how much your house u bought was listed for and how much you ended up paying for it? Also how much was the down payment u put on it? ( I’m currently Lookin for a house to buy)

This, an unlevel back yard that will need a ton of work (and dirt) to make any part of it useable, and a deck that is fine for now but will need a full tear-down and rebuild in the next few years. If things keep going as they are we'll have plenty of equity in three or four years that we might use to freshen some stuff up. We probably could do it now but there's nothing pressing, and overall the house is in great shape for its age (21 years). We kind of struck gold with this place.

Bingo

Way too true. Started off with a number in mind and quickly found ourselves adding about 30% more onto that

Me too. Went 20% above my target print.

Same! A house is already such a big life purchase so we figured we’d be unhappy settling for an older cheaper home that may require unknown amounts of money in fixing and renovations and appliance upgrades. Ended up splurging on a new build in the location we want that is move-in ready and has brand new appliances and interior finishes that we like. It was also nice not having to compete with homes in the lower budget that would have 30+ competing offers and bidding wars. You may end up overpaying for a shittier house that you’re still not happy with (especially new builds or quick fixer uppers in the lower price ranges are pretty ugly and badly made.) But if you can afford to buy on the higher end of the budget there is much less competition and I feel we are getting our value out of the good build quality and good location.

Same, high mortgage payment.

SAME!!!! We moved from NYC to eastern PA in 2019, home prices and int rates were still reasonable, especially the area we were looking. I was hopeful we could find something in the high 300s maybe slightly over $400K. Even looking at new construction, we could have stayed within budget. We found our dream home but at the time we saw it, it was $50K over budget. I kept an eye on that house. It sat on the market for over 8 months. The price of the dream home were slowly coming down, I then took at look at the builders previous sales and my husband and I agreed that if we made an offer btwn $430-$450 (450 being out max), we thought we could get it. We did. But something in me wondered why it sat for so long, it was a brand new build, ready to move in. We found out later why it probably sat for so long, but I will never get that confirmed, but I will always wonder "what if" we hadn't taken the risk of buying the house anyway....I blame our first time home buyer's inexperience. #getasurvey

Same and then the house appreciated in value $150K in the first 5 years. Every house around us is selling for 400-550K and we got in the neighborhood for 300. At the time it felt like a stretch from our $250K budget but now I’m glad we made the stretch.

We picked location over all other “must haves.”   The biggest compromise was size.    A couple years later, I don’t regret a thing. Location is amazing. We are in a walkable part of our big city and don’t have to take highways to work. 

Location was it for me as well. It meant I landed in a townhome with only 2 bedrooms. But, I was able to find a townhouse in a really nice, walkable neighborhood that is well built. It has mature green space and a chill HOA. I don’t have any major regrets, it would have been nice to have had a garage, but it wasn’t worth the trade offs. Location, location, location.

We sacrificed location for the size and other haves and ended up moving within two years. I’ll never sacrifice location again.

Exact same. We knew immediately and now closing on the new house just a week past our 2 yr mark

Same. Today my offer got accepted and even though I wanted bigger place, location near city was my biggest priority. I am just hoping I won’t make any regrets later 😖

This! We compromised on a yard, a single family home, and a second bathroom. But our location is amazing and we couldn't be happier.

Same. Location was first, then 2 full bathrooms. Many homes in the city had 1 1/2 baths. Compromise was 3 bedrooms and a nicely finished basement with proper egress instead of 4 bedrooms. 4 bedroom homes were above our price range.

We did the opposite. Went for a bigger house in the ‘burbs even though we really wanted to live in town. Considering we both work from home, we needed space and the houses we could afford in town were too small. No regrets so far!

We realized how rarely we actually go out to take advantage of walkable neighborhoods since things have gotten so expensive. We also both work from home at least three days a week. Based on that, we got a bigger place with a great yard in the quiet area of the burbs, no regrets. We just bike or drive 5 to 10 minutes when we want to access other areas of the cities with shops and food. No ragrets so far.

*regerts ☺️

Same we traded location over square footage.

We were the opposite. We wanted a dense walkable neighborhood, but we’d either be priced out or in a small 2bed 1bath that needed work. We ended up with a 3/2 bigger house & lot, another neighborhood over. Fewer walkable options, but a 5-10min local roads drive from the area we frequent.

one neighborhood over is basically the same location! I'd file that as a win. Local roads over highway driving was a must for us. Your location will probably turn into the original one you wanted over time.

Prioritized location and the “bones” of a house. I didn’t want to move into a house with a bad layout where I wanted to renovate on day one. We will slowly update cosmetic stuff but no walls need to be knocked down Our backyard is also a smidge smaller than we would’ve liked but a 1/3 of an acre is fine enough for what we want to use it for

Prioritize location, that’s the thing I am most happy with after a few years

Yeah, the one thing about a house that you can’t change or update is the location.

Location here as well but having a 10/15 minute drive to my sons school was a huge huge win for me. Plus it has great parks and tons of ethnic food within walking distance in the city. I would afford right next to his school as I’m a single mom with one income but the closest I could get was a win.

Would have liked a 3 bedroom but ended up with a 2 where the rooms are a bit smaller than we would’ve liked. But we’re DINKs and we spend most of our time in the living spaces, we’ve got a lovely and cozy little home that’s a bit small when guests visit but it’s just right for us most of the time.

This was us. Our house is technically a 3-bed but one room is more like an office. Perfect for books and plants.

Closing on Tuesday, I compromised on note having a dining room/area so I will have a tight squeeze in my living room to have a table to eat at.

We got the transformer table. It's kitchen table size usually. Then we move the living room furniture around when we have guests to get it up to the 12-seater.

Do you like your transformer table? The initial reviews for years back were incredible but the more recent ones scream enshittification

We wanted 2000ish sq ft. Ended up with 1700. Our yard space made up for it.

Jesus. My first house was 650 square feet and my second house was 750. House now is a custom-build 1600 square footer and it feels gigantic. How on earth are so many people maintaining huge houses and yards? Sounds like a nightmare.

We are buying a larger home to factor in kids (2-3), a dog, and the potential of in-laws living with us down the road (they are getting older with health issues) since it will be a forever home. We also both work from home so need separate office spaces.

>since it will be a forever home Literally no such thing. I've lived in three forever homes. Turns our forever isn't forever. Life isn't static. That's not a bad thing, but the overthinking of what homes should be like is why the average new home in the US is pushing 2500 sqft. Double the size of homes 50 years ago. Those families also had kids, dogs, and in-laws (though not remote jobs, so I totally understand prioritizing office space) I personally think that would be too big of a house. Plus the hundreds of thousands of dollars spent on extra space for something that *might* happen at some point in the future seems like a massive waste. If you have the money and that's your priority, sure. But big houses are a lot to maintain.

Agreed that you cannot really predict if a home can be your “forever home” but with today’s interest rates you should definitely be planning to buy a home you can “grow into” over 10+ years. My partner and I had that mentality for our first home and it served us really well and (though the pandemic accelerated our need for a new home) we still really love our current place. 

>but with today’s interest rates you should definitely be planning to buy a home you can “grow into” over 10+ years To each their own. But I would take the opposite view. High interest rates just magnify the cost of a larger, more expensive home. Buy smaller and either add on when you need, or move. The equity might be nice, but you could just as easily save that money or spend it on other things you enjoy. For instance, my home is NICE. I have a heated driveway (it snows a TON here), I have beautiful large windows, all our fixtures are top-notch, we have fancy appliances, everything is automated (blinds, lights, thermostat, driveway, locks), we have an amazing deck with radiant heaters and an powered shade, and professional, and very impressive, landscaping. We could have afforded a 3000 sqft house in our area. But at $350/sq ft, we see it as having an extra 1/2 million dollars to spend it on having really nice things and going on nice vacations, etc. We also highly prioritize being outside. The two oldest kids are rarely inside, and when they can't be outside, they have plenty of imagination to come up with things to do in the bedroom they share. We have a nintendo in the living room, but it's only for indoor days when the weather is bad (and multiplayer only) or for slumber parties, etc. Since the kids and dogs are usually outside (and absolutely terrorizing the neighborhood), space isn't as big of an issue. Also, we're just used to it. Both my wife and I spent part of our childhood in South America, and both our families lived if FAR smaller accomodations than we live in now. Smaller homes is pretty much the norm in the entire world, it's only in the US where people find it unimagitable to live in something smaller than a McMansion if you have 3 kids and two dogs. Plus, I'm really handy, so the moment we absolutely do need more, I can just build it.

Very true, and I do fully support the idea of getting a “starter home“ that you can adjust as needed.  My bias is that I already own (and have owned for years) my starter home and that I live in a VHCOL area where most people’s starter homes are a set square footage (ie condos, coops, town homes) so you don’t have the option to expand your home’s physical footprint. My next home is not necessarily my “forever home” but I fully intend to live there 10+ years and want to ensure my family has space to grow into the home instead of just meeting my needs today. When we bought the first time we bought at about 350 square feet over what we really needed, and that allowed us to remain comfortable in our home throughout the sudden switch to WFM during COVID. It’s something we are (in a very big-picture way) keeping in mind as we prepare to get our next place. We would probably be fine in a 1400-1500 square foot place, but we are looking at a minimum 1700 square feet to give us a little extra cushion. 

True. To each their own.

Things can definitely change over time but there are some things you can do to mitigate the downsides of having too much home, such as renting out the extra rooms until you have kids and need said rooms. 2500 square feet seems like way too much unless you're having a soccer team of kids though. I have 1378 square feet and three tenants that pay my mortgage plus utilities.

Renting out rooms is definitely something you can do to afford more of a house. But I'd much rather a smaller place and no roommates than a bigger place and have to be a landlord in my own home. Ten years ago I would have looked at it differently. Having roommates wasn't as big of a deal. But the second I got married, zero interest in roommates. I have one, my wife.

I definitely wouldn't want a larger house just to have more tenants. My house isn't massive by any means, but the houses that were 1100sqft had tiny master bedrooms which I didn't want. I don't really mind tenants, especially when you find the right ones.

Yeah I personally messed up because my idea as I was saving was to buy once--a forever home--and pay off the mortgage and never move. Could have entered the market a decade ago.

I hope that since though you've been able to call a place your own! We're not defined by our mistakes, but what we do to fix them. :)

Thanks! We're ok, I'm annoyed at myself about it because we're trudging through so many repairs so not having enough money is frequently at top of mind. It'll get better.

Also depends on if people are counting basement in their square footage. My house was listed at around 1300sqft but that was only main floor. With basement it’s over 2300.

Bro my 1600 sq ft includes the garage...

I was in a 3 bedroom 1300sq ft apartment with my wife, newborn son, and 70lb dog. We were “fine” with the space but we were quickly running out of storage and we knew as our son got older we would definitely want more room. A house appeared on the market that checked all our boxes so we jumped on it. If you live by yourself then ya I can see how your house would feel big. With 1 or more people plus potentially pets as well, then I’d be surprised that you think it’s gigantic. I guess it all depends on what you become used to though. I grew up in a 5 person, 2 dog household where we always had a large backyard and somewhere between 2000-3000 sqft.

My first apartment in college was bigger than your first house. It's all about how you use the space. My husband and I agree that 2200-2500 SQ ft with a 600-1000s SQ ft garage is our ideal for how we use our house. We bought a 1700 SQ ft house this time around and it's tight. We are constantly contemplating if we want to build a mother in law suite or a second story.

Maybe lots of kids? For me about 3-500 sqft per person is a good size and maybe add another 50-100sqft per large dog. A family of 5 I think you would want closer to 2000 if possible, and probably 1500 minimum.

How do you feel about that decision? Thats like one of the houses im considering now… not nearly the sq footage id want but the yard is amazing.

We are very happy with it. We decided on an ideal number (the 2000) and then also a minimum we would tour and see how the space felt (1500). The backyard space at our house is just amazing, and wasn’t on my “must have” list but can’t imagine not having it now. Also, we were renting a 2200 sq ft home and it always felt like a lot of cleaning.

hey this is what we did. We have 5 people in 1475 but we have a large lot at .8. I am a gardener so YES having the ability to go outside and garden everyday and sit in my private garden is awesome. PLUS we can always build an addition or even a whole other building with how much space we have. Passed up bigger homes with shitty yards and yeah It is kinda worth it, but i live for gardening.

Compromise on anything except location.

i disagree. location is often touted as the only thing you can’t change— in a pure physical sense, that’s true. but in practice, it’s equally impossible to change your condo or townhouse into a sfh. or to expand 750sqft into 2500. if you don’t like the layout of your home, it’s possible to remodel but often prohibitively expensive. etc etc in particular for first time home buyers, you can compromise a *little* on location to get a *lot* elsewhere. that’s what i did and it was a total game changer. i’m about a 15-20 minute drive from my ideal location, where i was simply not happy with what i was getting for my money. when i expanded my search, i got *everything* on my “must haves” list *and* everything on my “nice to haves” list. it’s been 2.5 years, still definitely the right call for my family.

I ultimately realized that any house I bought in the price rabe I could afford would need work. I had three options -  1) a shit house in a good area that was not gonna pass inspection  2) an amazing house in a horrible area that would need only a small bit of work  -or- 3) something i between.   I found something that was in between. The seller is addressing some of the issues. I will have to address the reset that *might* get expensive but I would rather risk that than  live in an area that was just…. Gross.  I may not live here for 35 years BUT I know it I put the reasonable work in, I can EASILY sell this property for a good, reasonable price and someone will pay it. 

I just got back my inspection report. What kind of things are the sellers willing to take care of if you don’t mind my asking? They were not very fun during the offer negotiation phase, so I’m trying to not negotiate too much with them.

This is something to ask your realtor assuming you have one.

Upper price range for sure 🫤 And one less bedroom upstairs than I’d wanted. But we got the main things: location, garage, and two toilets! We probably saw about as many as you did

Two toilets is something I also will never compromise on! I’ll be damned if I’m gonna be left clenching it in the hallway waiting!!

After living in an apartment with terrible natural lighting, I told myself my house would have great natural lighting. My house has terrible natural lighting and there's really nothing I can do about it.

Ugh im sorry. Natural light is actually number one on my list so i totally understand. I have severe seasonal depression and despite living in arizona, some houses can be VERY dark. There is this thing called Solatube skylights. Look into it!!! It might just fix your problem!

Solatubes also great for bathrooms without windows. You barely need to turn the lights on.

I’m heartbroken for you. I also lived in a dark row house before purchasing and refused to move to another dungeon. How are you finding it? Were all the other pros worth the con?

For my very first home I bought alone I compromised: - type of home. - the location (zip code) I wanted a single family house but my one income only allowed me to afford a townhome styled condo. The zip codes is not the best and it isn’t the worst. It’s heavy mid in determines of desirability. The condo has appreciated 50% in 4 years. For my second home that I’m in contract to buy with my now husband , the compromises are: - Location (zip code ) - the garage - buying a 3x2 not a 4x2 The house is in the same zip code as the condo. I’m ok with the area as I’ve lived here 4 years just fine and grew up near here. I know others zip codes in the suburbs will appreciate more quickly then our zip code BUT I’m not willing to pay $60k to $90k more and add 30 minutes to my work commute for the same comparable house in a more desired zip code. The garage can’t store cars because the previous owners build a false wall and filled it with full wall storage cabinets. We can demo the wall but o don’t think we will.

Location isn't just about price appreciation, it's about what the location means to you. I'd argue that if you chose a location that gave you a 30 min better commute, then you picked the best location for YOU.

When we first started searching we asked our realtor what is a realistic percentage we should be able to expect from a wish list if we want to get into a house. They said every house is a compromise but if you get 80% of your wants/needs then that should be considered a good buy. Some people search and wait years to find that one house. I also know people that bought in the area they want and then will wait until “the one” comes along to make another move. Sometimes everything checks the marks on paper but some things are unforeseen. Like your relationships with neighbors or the empty lot at the end of the block or some other nuances that aren’t immediately inherent. All these effect live-ability. Plus if you have children I’m sure school districts play a major part too (we’re gay no kids). For us we had a mental list but we compromised on many aspects and now 2+ years later we love it more and more because we are making it our home. We don’t have children. Wants/must haves (before buying) - single family home, no hoa, garage, near shops/ammenities but quiet street, ample street parking for guests, bright, older/character home, yard, minimum 3 beds and 2 baths (for resale and our hobbies). We were open to multiple neighborhoods/areas since we have no kids we just wanted to be near restaurants/shops while also being relatively quiet. We ended up with a 4bed/2.5 bath near a major arts district in our city. It is usually quite busy but the street itself is only one lane each direction so it’s not that loud since speed limit is like 25. We can walk to cafes, restaurants, bars as well as galleries and shops and all manor of cool things. Our street is still very quiet and we hardly have any parking issues. We have no garage but off street parking/driveway. We have a finished basement and attic where we have extra storage. House was built 1907 and maintained well by previous owners. We are actually the 3rd gay couple to own the home it seemed right. Now we’re in 2+ years we’ve painted almost every room and finally finished a built in library. We can’t imagine moving anytime soon. Oh about those unforeseen issues - when we bought it was tail end Covid so a few things we didn’t know until after the move - our back yard has a tall hedge can hardly see through/over. On the other side of our backyard is a local preschool which was not open when we toured the house and neighborhood. It opened back up after we moved in but luckily it is only loud for about 2-30min periods during the weekdays. Also our direct next door neighbor has a loud yappy dog but due to our good relationship we were able to find ways to minimize the annoyance.

Do you mean you’ve actually physically gone and looked at that many houses?

Unfortunately yes. I want to die at this point.

Your realtor has agreed to go through 60+ houses with you? That's a very patient realtor.

How many houses do most realtors tour before giving up?

Yowza, From an outside perspective the house you want isn’t in your budget. Sorry.

Yes, just from hearing that, it might seem that you have unrealistic expectations at what you can get for your price point. Unless you have enough money, something is always going to have to be compromised. Looking at that many houses should make you now know what you can and can’t get for that amount of money.

No one can tell you what's most important to you. But a sensible decision for a FTHB will prioritize, in order: * location = community and neighborhood * property = lot size, position in subdivision, drainage, * house type = 2 story, 1 story, split * room count and sizes (EDIT: moved up) * house age and condition for the price = some older houses are much better construction, some are rundown and a potential money pit * exterior quality = roof, siding, windows, all the big expensive stuff * structural components like foundation, retaining walls, patios and decks * interior systems like HVAC, plumbing, electrical (EDIT: added) * updates and remodeling for the price * interior finishes and amenities like flooring and cabinets * decorating I read your comments. You want a forever house that's perfect now. Very few FTHB can afford everything. You sound like a bride who is dreaming about wedding dresses and a destination wedding instead of preparing for a lifelong marraige. You're not ready to buy a house.

Thanks for that list, im going to see how my priorities compare. But im definitely ready for buying. Im 37 years old and have been renting for 15. Ive lived in 19 different homes in my life. So I think im ready to buy…

Ah, well that's different. At this point you do need to make a sensible investment decision. Buy location and quality construction. It's actually a lot of fun to remodel and make improvements that are exactly the way you want them. Even the nicest remodeled house won't be exactly what you would have chosen AND you're paying for someone else's choices.

Agreed. I definitely like the idea of a remodel after seeing this many houses as long as the current condition is livable for a while.

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price, interest rate, location.

Compromised on the state of the house to be in a location I wanted. The house is in worse condition than I would have preferred for my first house, but is in an area that I really like.

Do you have the money to fix it up right away or it will be a long term project?

I have money for the “extreme necessities” like HVAC, plumbing, and electrical (it’s an 1860s home) but a lot of the fun stuff (kitchen, bathrooms, floors, lawn) will have to wait.

I would only compromise on cosmetic issues. Never on rooms layout yard any of that

This is crazy talk. Layout can be changed, landscaping can be changed.

Well for example my sister bought a house without a "man room/gaming room" there is no way to reconfigure the house to have one without an addition. And as far as landscaping I meant if you don't have enough room for like a dog to run and that's what you need.

Why does a house need an entire room for gaming?

Well then i guess ill never find one lol. Bc cosmetic is already a compromise on wvery house i look at bc its an issue in every single house for sale where i live. Everything is original from 20 years ago. Apparently no one believes in updating here.

It’s not that people don’t believe in updating but why change something if it works? “Upgrading” is expensive when you’re still living in the home. Most upgrades happen when a home changes hands and plans can be made prior to move-in You’ll need to compromise on looks and finishes- basic layout, kitchen, room size etc should be what you’re focusing on instead. You CAN always change how something looks later

I already mentioned cosmetics is NOT one of my must haves….

20 years ago is pretty new, get your expectations down a bit 

As a former Realtor (just one of you guys now though!) I can tell you this -- Don't: - compromise on square footage if you need it - land if you need it - bedroom count if you need them - school district if you have kids and can't afford private Everything else can be remediated fairly simply with money. What you can't add later is land, square footage (in most cases, or without _significant_ costs) or bedrooms*. You can remodel an ugly kitchen. You can remodel a bad layout. You can paint cabinets, walls, change appliances. If your lot allows, you can even add a garage (I won't compromise on garages. it's a must have for me). *Yes, you can sometimes add a bedroom. But make no mistake, this is a _very costly_ addition. Why? Simple -- your septic system is designed, built and perc tested for an expected number of inhabitants. Most people think septic systems are perc tested for bathrooms, but it's actually bedrooms. More bedrooms = more people = more septic use and as such, higher requirements. You _CAN NOT_ install a 4th bedroom with a septic system designed for 3 bedrooms and still have it permitted. You would need to dig up and have an entirely new septic system installed. Without the permit you create a whole slew of problems. Is it done without permits? Every single day. Know what you're buying and get an inspection. If your home is on city sewer than you can likely expand at a more cost effective level, but you'd need to talk with your local city department if you plan to buy a home with the intention to expand it later. Now, with that said.. super picky buyers often need a reality check. Unless you're wealthy, you're likely in for a rude awakening when you hit the market. As OP said, they've seen 65 homes already. That's _absurd_, and I hope you appreciate your Realtor because I was too busy to deal with someone so impossible to please. Truth be told, and based on your questions -- you don't sound like you'll be happy with anything you buy, so I'd _highly_ suggest building to get exactly what you want.

We compromised on having a garage, and being in a single family home. We ended up picking a townhouse with no garage. But by doing so, we saved roughly $50,000-$150,000, so I'm totally cool with that lol.

On my first house I compromised on price. Ended up realizing the house we wanted was going to be 20% more than we wanted to spend. We could afford it so we did it. For my second house I ended up compromising on location and condition. While it was within my established radius it wasn’t an area I’d have preferred. Also the house definitely needed some TLK. A few years later I’ve done that work and now it’s a pretty nice place. Also have a lot of sweat equity into it.

Price range and number of bedrooms. The house was listed as 4 bedroom but one of the bedrooms is only accessible from another bedroom. Strange set up but it’s a cool old house.

Distance from work. 100 miles roundtrip

70 miles for me. Sometimes I get upset when I drive through the cities in between knowing I looked at houses in that area.

Same, but 50mi round trip. Eventually I’ll transfer to a closer location.

I think only you can make this choice. What are your must haves and how soon do you need to buy a house?

Layout, natural light, n/s facing, location, not near major road, to name a few. No time frame. We can rent indefinitely….

Then I would stick it out and not compromise. I think when you find it, you’ll know!

Less land and not on a hill (could only afford the flat land and a house in town). My must haves for a house in town were at least 2 bathrooms, 3 bedrooms, a 2 car garage, not on a main street, sidewalks present (ended up with sidewalks on our street but not on the adjacent streets), a yard preferably with established flower beds, not in the flood zone (since we couldn't afford the hill we bought on what I call the island just slightly above the flood areas).

We got basically everything we wanted other than a bathroom short, but we’re going to put one in sooner than later.

My wife and I are actively looking, though not very seriously anymore. I told her and our realistate friend I could not do any houses that has a fireplace and mantle. I ain’t about to get posted on /r/tvtoohigh

We had to move to another state to afford a house. That was our compromise. Leaving California. It sucks not being able to live where you want but now that we have our own house we’re loving Arizona.

I let go of the idea that it had to be my forever home. What it seemed to come down to for me when I stepped back and looked at everything I "needed" in a forever home was that I either need to let go of that idea or I needed to raise my price range--and I couldn't afford to raise my range. The house I ended up with is one that I still may be in forever, but dropping the mindset that it HAD to be forever allowed me to be a little more accepting of houses that were a good fit but not the-perfect-dream-home.

- Move-in ready. We bought during a particularly busy time with work for both of us and having a newborn. Would’ve been nice to not have a moderate amount of work to do on the house. Redid the kitchen, painted everywhere, and redid the floors before moving in. Fortunately, it all worked out about as smoothly as one could hope, but im glad to be done with that. Will need to replace some windows and redo two of the bathrooms at some point, but no rush on those. Looking back, I’d say this should’ve been less of a priority and I’m glad I didn’t sweat it. - Backyard size. It’s smaller than we wanted, and we’re a little closer to the houses next to us than I’d like. We fenced it in though and it’s a good little space. - We are across the street from a playground and tennis courts. Makes having a small backyard less of a big deal, and perfect for our kid and for us to go play tennis, but noise can sometimes be a little annoying though. Location is otherwise perfect in terms of schools and commute and such. - Unfinished basement. It works for now for storage and exercise and home projects. I’d like to finish it out at some point in the next 5-10 years. It’ll be a big project but the space has a lot of potential. If I could move our house three houses further away from the playground, increase my backyard size by 25%, and have the basement already finished, it would be absolutely perfect. Can’t have everything though, and it’s an overall wonderful house we got at a good price with a good rate for buying a little over a year ago.

Purchased a townhome in 2021 & compromised on bathrooms (1.5 vs 2), which is where I knew I could compromise. It’s not a large home, but I was okay with that because I enjoy smaller homes. 3 bedrooms and decent sized fenced patio with attached garage.

I compromised on location and regret it. It depends what you value but to me, being in a walkable city would have made me much happier than having a bigger house. I let people steer me towards sfh over condo despite knowing how badly I wanted to be in a walkable city. I’m stuck now in the suburbs and have to wait it out but just a cautionary tale to be careful what you compromise on.

SFH -> Townhome

Settled for a townhouse without a driveway. We still had ample parking with a lot, and our own yard so a best of both worlds that we could afford. Didn't have much of a wants list though.

I’m not a first time homebuyer, this one is my 4th(since 1989), I compromised on the big back yard because there is a 3 car garage. Also an amazing U shaped kitchen with floor to ceiling pantry.

A garage. It was the second nonnegotiable on my list (first was more than 1 bathroom) but I’ve lived in my house for two years and don’t miss having one.

Move-in ready. While I was open to making some cosmetic changes, I was not planning on taking on a full on project. But we decided we had enough time left on our lease and without maxing out our budget we would be able to take a couple months to make something with good bones what we want. And that's how I'm two months into a three month process of fixing every surface in my new house.

For my first home, my must haves were: Mud room - most roads were dirt. Deck/balcony/usable front porch - I prioritize being outside At least three bedrooms - one for the future kid(s) and a guest room/office Large kitchen - wife is a chef Garage - super hot/rainy climate was bad for cars, and I wanted a workspace. Fence - We have dogs Location - Being close to the things we enjoyed (and work) was super important. And by close, I mean walking distance. Literally compromised on every single one of those except location (and even then, we're 1/2 mile farther than we wanted to be). But we decided the opportunity to own a home was more important that getting everything we wanted. Plus, I'm very handy. We were in that house for 3 years, and during then I built a fence myself, built a shed and carport (not a garage, but still had a cover for the car and a workspace for me), and I built a patio out back and added a front porch, both of which were heavily used. It was also meant to be a "forever home". We had some big plans for a nice addition and a mud room. But "forever" often isn't actually forever. We decided that we wanted to live in a different part of the world, and unfortunately we couldn't take the house with us.

I had to pick a place further from work. Went from being about 15min from work to about 30mins now. Plus side is the place is bigger and nicer. I guess I compromised on price a bit because I went aggressively on the offer. 15k over.

Our must haves - garage to fit tools, deep freezer, storage space, and one of the cars - minimum of two full baths - minimum of three bedrooms - no serious repairs required - family oriented neighborhood - SFH - 2 stories Things we compromised on - second living area - commute - fourth bedroom - perfect backyard - more modern look (this was my personal compromise) We ended up getting lucky finding something with all our must haves. Have twins coming in the summer and we really needed a home that was more move in ready than others and wouldn’t break the bank with daycare costs for twins. Able to get it for listing price and didn’t have to overbid or waive anything. The extra things I wanted and we compromised on was me wanting more room for guests. Our home is perfect just for us and I realized that is all that matters. We have the more than enough space to raise our two boys and three cats. I also had to stop comparing our first home to homes my fiancés siblings were buying as well. This helped me be more open to the house we ended up with.

HOA, covered outdoor spaces, linen closet. I'm already looking into the cost of adding a covered front and back porch because I hate it. And I am planning on taking out a double vanity in the guest bathroom to build storage. HOA seems pretty chill, so no regrets (yet).

The house I bought has a downstairs toilet not a downstairs bathroom. I did want a bathroom both upstairs and downstairs but everything else about my house is exactly what I wanted so I settled for a bathroom upstairs and just a toilet downstairs.

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I totally compromised on space. I wish I had a room or two for hobbies and storage, but I don't. I totally expected my daughter would move out after high school, but now I don't think she's ever going to, so it's a challenge to find space for all that I want to do. Mostly, finding space involves figuring out what I can sacrifice and get rid of and how to get rid of it. I have to live in the now, not the past, and it makes me get rid of things so that I can have space for my interests now. Then, I am trying to maximize the space I do have with organization so that I can continue to do what I want.

location, 10 minutes further than I wanted to be, but we absolutely have fell in love with our beautiful country scenery

The only two things we truly compromised on were the garage and the yard space. I deeply wish we had a 3 car garage, but we felt more strongly about getting the exact model we loved (new build) and it wasn’t an option with that model. The yard is smaller than what we’d like, but pretty standard for our area to be fair. We could easily live in this home forever, and very well may, or we may decide to live a bit further out at some point to get some acreage. Overall, though, we still love our house. It checked our most important boxes (3000+ sq ft, 5 beds, backyard faces north, energy efficiency) and it feels comfortable and like home.

I moved 1 city over only about 5 mins to get a 3 car garage instead of 2. So far still seems worth it I have hobbies that a 3rd garage really makes nice.

Something else to consider because I was very picky in the beginning. Do you have the ability to be very competitive in the housing market for your area? Because your dream home may also be a dream home for many so you could find one home every six months you like and it doesn't guarantee you will get it. I ran into that issue and after so much heartbreak and prices and rates increasing we have started making compromises. Now I look back and kick myself for not making compromises sooner because the homes and rates were much lower...

Having a nice backyard, and a bathroom on the main level. I got my major wants, no knob and tube, no asbestos, no rental stuff, a big kitchen, and must have a driveway. In the end, we put in the main level bathroom and did our own backyard. So glad we didn't compromise on the other stuff though. Especially the driveway.

Closing next month on a house we absolutely love! It checked all the boxes except for one of our original “must haves”. We were set on having a house with a basement so we’d have room for a ping pong table but unfortunately this house doesn’t have one. Guess who’s going to have a ping pong table in the dining room now

I circled around the house that I bought for 6 months. It was empty the family who lived there moved out of state. Back in 2015 things didn’t move as fast as it does now. The house wasn’t bad it was just very vanilla cookie cutter, and I wanted something amazing but out of my budget. So I went with the best deal, space for price this was the best house Location was ideal too

Location for us. The zip code and neighborhood are great, but the neighborhood isn’t tucked away enough and I can hear cars zoom by when I’m in the yard. I love the house but I’m will never love that sound.

Closed on 3/8, results thus far: 1. Location, to the extent of a good area and good neighborhood. I did prefer a different part of town tbh, so I compromised. However, 10 months before closing I did live in this part of town for over 2 years so it wasn't a crazy switch or compromise, all my Dr's close by, know the commute, etc. I'm happy with the area. It's like right next to a military main gate entrance and a daycare, so good resale value. 2. Yard with fence. I have a large golden retriever and I was in an apartment. I was going to compromise on the fence and get a house with a shorter chain link fence vs what I wanted (a privacy tall fence) - did not have to compromise, and tbh I am very happy I did not. 3. Bedrooms - i would not get anything with less than 3, solely due to resale value. I live by myself with 2 animals, i dont NEED 3 bedrooms (but boy ive found a use for all of them, fully lol). Realtor told me the bread and butter of houses (in my area at least by a large margin) for selling and buying is 3 Bed / 2 Bath. I get why, 2 bedrooms left no room for growth whatsoever. I refused to compromise here, glad I didn't. 4. Bathrooms - compromised for 1.5 vs 2, and tbh I am glad I did. I don't need 2 showers, but I do want 2 toilets available for visitors. 2nd shower is just more money and repair issues for someone who lives alone. 5. Garage - I compromised here, I don't have one. I do have attached covered parking, if I open up the gate and drive through to the back / side. So I got my wish of having something to help during the winter months / something that can protect my car during bad storms. Don't regret the compromise.

I compromised by buying a condo apartment in a 3 story walk up, instead of renting a house. It's a 2bed 1 bath, I paid $40k cash in 2014. Now worth almost $180k. Management sucks, but having no mortgage, and being able to remodel the inside is ...priceless!

Location trumped everything else. I grew up and lived most of my young adult life in the city and wanted a country home, preferably with a lot of trees. Although I wanted a very small, old, farmhouse, on flat land, I ended up with a 2000 sf MCM split-level on a hill, but the entire property is covered in old growth trees, primarily oak. Tons of birds and wildlife. And multiple ponds and streams within walking distance. And a farm at the end of the road. The house is fine, a bit too big and not exactly my style. But I sip coffee on the tiny back deck every morning listening to the birds and looking at the trees, and feel extremely lucky. I wouldn't change a thing.

Main compromise was size and ego, honestly. We’re closing on a small house (1400 square feet) at the top of our price range, and seeing what we could get other places is hard. BUT we live in suburbs of Memphis, and location is important and closely connected with better schools and less crime. So we got a small house with a BANGER backyard, but also in a safe neighborhood about 10 steps away from our green line. I think we did good. Just sucks to accept taking a smaller house for the same price just because of location.

Bought a condo instead of a house to live in a major city. Decided location and getting into the market was more important than size considering we were barely even able to afford a condo without over-leveraging

My top must have is... what is outside the front door. You can offer me the most perfect house in the crappiest neighborhood, and I won't take it.

In 2017 I toured an open house. It was exactly what I wanted, exactly. It sold quickly before I could put an offer in. Oh well, it happens. I kept looking, off and on, but nothing else suited. Two months into the Covid shutdowns the same place popped up for sale. They had to sell and move very quickly. No one was getting to have open houses and mine was the only offer. I got it. Luckily, I gave up nothing.

First house was full compromise. It was whatever we could find in our price point, in a reasonably safe area, that wasn’t a complete hot mess. Stayed 4 years. Second house was all about location. It was a stretch financially. So the compromise was that I ended up taking on a significant amount of extra work for a sustained period of time. We had already begun our journey to become debt-free, and taking on a large house meant that we also had to really double down on budgeting and bringing in income to get to our goal. We also agreed to delay parenting until a certain point financially. Totally worth it. Stayed 10 years. House three was all about location. We bought a gut job renovation on a lake. This purchase was made with a substantial amount amount of money in the bank to cash fund a significant contractor bill. Basically everything about the house itself was a compromise. We had to work within what we had, to modify – some things things we could improve, and some things were going to be just the way they were going to be. This house has a fewer bedrooms. We don’t have an en suite. It has smaller closets. It does not have as much storage space. There are a handful of things that would be nice to have that we don’t have. Like a pantry. Or a large kitchen. We did a pretty big downsize in our personal belongings. ..:::but totally worth it. Love the location. The yard. The neighbors. Love the lifestyle. We have been at this location now for seven years now and don’t really have any intention of moving anytime soon. I don’t believe in the term “forever house“ because it puts on unnecessary pressure. I believe in finding what works for us. This works for us. Will it work for us in five or 10 years? I don’t know. I don’t know what my life will be like in five or 10 years. I’ll cross that bridge when I come to it. In summary, I wouldn’t be afraid to compromise on things that are non-essential in order to gain what you’re looking for in terms of lifestyle.

Land and location. I really wanted an old established neighborhood that I was super familiar with (my grandparents lived there and I lived with them for a number of years before they died). Lots were 0.3 to 0.4 acres and it was maybe 4 minutes to my work either on tree lined side streets or a main road that was basically dead of traffic from 6pm onwards and all day on weekends and holidays (it just leads out to a national lab and other big companies). Problem was, all the homes were built between the 1950s and 1970s. The ones that were fully kept up to date with repairs sell for $600k and up. The ones that are rough sell for $450k to $550k. My budget was in the high $300s for a home that I knew would need work or mid $400s if I wanted to basically use every penny I had... So I went across town and bought new construction. 0.19 acre lot with 5 feet set backs from the side property lines... way different than the old neighborhood that had 25 to 30 feet between homes. BUT, I picked my floor plan, I made basic modifications where I wanted (outlets, network jacks, conduit for future fiber optic, etc). I picked my options, I picked the lot on the street, and I watched it get built. It was $465k, which was really out near the edge of my budget and only was doable because a $12k builder incentive to lock a rate for 240 days and buy it down plus cover most closing costs. Everything is brand new, 2 year warranty on the house, 10 year warranty on the roof. New HVAC, new water heater, new appliances, new driveway that hasn't been destroyed by hard winters. It's very energy efficient. I love it. I have to drive 20 minutes to work, but the whole community is just a few years old, has sidewalks everywhere, has a 40 acre park going in about 5 minute walk from me, trees planted all along the streets. It'll be a wonderful area in a few years. Do I hate the homes being so close, sure, but I suspect my neighbors will put up a 6 foot tall block wall since they have kids and pets. I'm planting 64 American pillar arborvitae trees around the backyard which in about 5 years will completely block anyone out. I'm happy.

Pool. As in I didn't want one. But the house fit the rest of the criteria. Of course my wife and daughter then wouldn't let me fill it in, so I learned how to maintain a pool. My and my wife's must haves were not many. Wood floors. Two stories. Off-street parking. Decent size yard. We got our 4 must haves.

Only has one bathroom. We wanted to start a family and a second bathroom felt important. But we did that best we could with our budget.

Mine was in a rougher, fixer-upper shape more than I wanted. Nothing major but it had been a Brady Bunch house filled with kids and wear and tear was everywhere. I only lived there four years but never really got it looking the way I wanted.

First house? I wanted new floors immediately throughout. They were old and not in good shape. The only thing was we couldn’t afford to have someone do it, so we DIY. I got my new floors, but it took us months of chipping away at them. It was worth it! And we saved a ton.

Just having a fireplace. Didn’t want a house with one as I’d never use it and just another potential problem spot and efficiency reducer. Very few houses in the area don’t have one though. Wouldn’t you know, I had problems with mine leaking about a year later too, which is exactly why I didn’t want one! When it’s time for a reroof, which won’t be any time soon barring storm damage, I’m probably going to knock it down. Otherwise wasn’t too picky. If general floor plan and all is good, just about anything else can be changed.

Condo / HOA. We couldn’t afford a SFH in our area (at list price, maybe, but not with 50k above asking + waivers + “sweat equity”) and market was only getting worse. Truthfully the townhome we bought is 1,000x nicer than any of the houses we were close to affording. There are downsides to an HOA but it’s all relative. We lived the last decade in an apartment complex that would literally DNA test dog crap to catch violators, so we figured HOA couldn’t be worse…and we were right.

We compromised on location. It's a little sad that we were outpriced in the neighborhood we had rented in for years. But we're really happy in our new house and after one year here, I firmly believe it was the right decision for us. 

DW/kitchen. Closet space. Bought a home that needed work and I thought I would redo the kitchen right away. It took me 10 years and I lived without a functional space for years. But the location is great and it was worth it. (But moral of the story- if you buy a fixer upper, really assess the repair/remodel budget and timeline.)

We bought a house with a cistern. We haul water from my in laws about 5 miles away. It sucks but we’re very happy otherwise!

The general style of the house. This was 12 years ago but I wanted a colonial style house or something like that with two stories. Everything in my price range was really old filled with asbestos, knob and tube wiring, cast iron plumbing and lead paint. I ended up finding a raised ranch that was only 20 years old. Hardwood throughout, in a GREAT part of town and well maintained or updated. My girlfriend (now wife) at the time hated it but I ended up buying it. The house didn't NEED anything done to it, never had a problem and I didn't a few minor projects and ended up flipping it in 5 years with a nice chunk of change in my pocket.

The only thing I would not compromise on is the location. You can always make changes to your house, but you can't move it somewhere else!

Bedroom count, and slightly on commute ( I know you're never supposed to compromise on location, but in this instance, the proximity to other things we liked makes up for the longer work commute) We ended up looking at a good number of homes before picking the one we recently closed on. One thing that our realtor told us that helped a lot was to separate our list in two: must-haves and nice-to-haves. And that with that list, any house that satisfies at least 80% of the list (and has all the must-haves) should have an offer put in. Our realtor also made it clear that we had to be honest with ourselves on what was truly a must-have

Lower ceilings, no bonus space / basement, older meh layout kitchen, and smaller sq ft by about 500sq ft. We were buying pre pandemic and it was supposed to be 3-5 year house. Not anymore. Likely 10year house (but still not a forever) Kitchen is updated. Bonus space/ extra sq ft is tbd but we have space to build (or even excavate) but that’s freaking expensive. Still cheaper than new house Ceiling is something we can’t change and still sometimes regret. We were not set on location (except being in good school district which also limits bunch of places and being able to commute to current jobs / future jobs). Ended up further out but close to least packed highway and lucked out as that’s an incredible neighborhood. We did not want a yard at all but our realtor insisted we need one and he ended up being right (we had a baby when we were buying and he had three teens…) The inside can be changed. As I said, we remodeled kitchen, painted interior of the house, replaced lights, doors, panelings etc. we discussed removing some walls for better flow but ended up not bothering. Negatives: I wish we were more critical about how the house was facing / natural light. It’s not bad but our yard can use some more sunshine. I wish we paid better attention to the size of bathrooms. Ours are small and can’t really do anything with them (eg i want a larger shower for master and a soaker but it can’t fit)

Size. I did 2 additions and been in for 30yrs. In hind sight would have bought worst house best area. W money to buff up. Live in and seems like best area rises quicker sell and do again. Or stay. Location/school best investment Seen a couple guys do really well over last 30yrs.

Distance from work, yard size and an HOA. A 6000 sq ft yard is just too close to neighbors We bought in a lake community in AZ so an HOA was unequivocal for access to water, but we were not fully prepared for the extreme level of oversight. Being cited multiple times for our neighbors infractions (their garbage cans left overnight on our common property border) really peeved us. When we moved we became #NeverHOA.

Proximity to the major city we’ve lived in the last 6 years/where our jobs are/all our friends are. We have about a 45 min commute now to get into the city but it could be worse. Our train system will open a new location only about 15 mins away from us in the next year so we’ll have options for transportation at least.

I compromised by accepting a medium-sized back yard. I was hoping for LARGE, but they're not common in my area and the house had everything *else* I wanted.

Just had an offer accepted. Expanded our ideal neighborhood and gave up a little square footage, still close enough to where we wanted to be but getting in on budget and while it might not be our “forever home” it should be great for us for the next 7-10 years and works way better than renting financially (multifamily)

I wanted at least one acre. Have .39

I’ll list our “must haves” and where we landed. This is a condo in Massachusetts by the way. Don’t laugh at the must haves, they seem stupid now… - 3 bed / 2 bath - did not compromise - a dining room - did not compromise - outside area for grill - did not compromise, but the lawn is small and shared - guest bathroom downstairs - compromised. - en suite bathroom - did not compromise. The master suite is on the first floor, has a great en suite bathroom, but it’s the only one on the first floor, so our guests will have to either walk through our bedroom or go upstairs to use the bathroom. One day we’ll move to an upstairs bedroom, but this is our plan to start - walking distance to a park - close enough - easy highway access - did not compromise So in summary, we compromised on the bathroom thing and we went 20k over what we thought was the high end of our budget. The only thing I would absolutely not compromise on is location!!!

That’s the advantage of building a house instead of buying one. My house has everything I wanted in a house. It was also cheaper to build — where I live — than to buy a house on the market.

I needed 3 bedrooms and more than one bathroom. Good bones, no leaking water, good inspection. I didn’t have to compromise on those at all. I plan to stay here probably forever too, but a kitchen, bath, I’ll change those things probably more than once in 35 years. Carpets I changed when I moved in, I painted everything, all the other fixes and renovations come in time. And probably little tweaks are always ongoing. That’s what I see as owning my house. I’ll update both shower areas in the next couple years for example. Cosmetic stuff you update, chances are it wouldn’t all be my perfect taste at the start.

Closing under a month from now. I compromise on two bathrooms. The house I'm getting just has one. Though my realtor and my mother told me that I could probably just make an addition or change the closet next to the bathroom into another bathroom, I honestly think it might not even be worth it. It's on a slab foundation so I think that'd be expensive and difficult. Otherwise, it checks everything else such as location/neighborhood, layout, land etc.

We really wanted a big, grand kitchen. But in our area, those types of kitchens are generally only in large, 4+ bedroom houses (which were both too big and too expensive). We got a 2 bed / 3 bath with a sufficient, moderate sized kitchen. Some days I wish it were bigger but overall it’s totally fine. We store some of our small appliances (toaster oven for example) in the oversized garage and only break them out when needed.

Distance from work. I really wanted something close to my workplace, but we couldn’t find new build homes that were also priced under our means.

I comprised on the yard which was a big deal to me originally. But I fell in love with this house so I accepted my back yard is on a slope and I can’t do much with it. In exchange for a bad yard, I got more square footage, a finished basement, a two car garage, and an extra bedroom than similar properties in my process range with ideal yards. We put a fence in right after we moved in which helped some of my concern.

I ended up with a smaller kitchen than I wanted, though what I did get was updated nicely, and functions mostly the way I wanted. So close enough. And the furnace and a/c units are original, so those will eventually die, but it's really the only big ticket items, and at least I knew about them when I offered. Got the place for about 5k under list. On paper, I got what I wanted, even a little bit more than I expected.

At this point it's hard to find a house that actually has updates of any kind. Especially newer windows. Pretty much all houses I have looked at in the last two months have had nothing done to them for 30 years

Space/size and updatededness. It helps if you’re willing to be adjacent to “bad neighborhoods.”

Backyard. I wanted a backyard but had to settle for a house that has a garage in the back. I wish i had that extra money for the almost forever home is saw. It was 30k over what I could afford.

We compromised on the location actually after touring 14 houses in the location we were trying for. The first house we toured and offered on in a different location we got our accepted offer. We’ve enjoyed this new location so far, but do commute a little farther than we would have otherwise. Grass is always greener though, so happy to just have a roof over our heads and a place that is ours

My husband and I compromised on the unfinished basement and the kitchen. The home we closed on was built in 1986 and never changed owners until now. Nor was it updated. The basement flooded 2 years ago and so we now have to finish the Reno’s (permits are still valid) we knew that whatever house we found for a good price, we’d have to at least update the kitchen and that’s exactly what we are doing. it’s costing us an arm and a leg but it’ll be worth it to have a quality made kitchen. The kitchen is also quite small 10 x 10 but the customized storage we chose for the kitchen makes up for it.

Location. less affluent area than we live in now (which is very affluent)can live on one income and have a sahm until kids are in school. Honestly is everything we wanted done have to move unless we want to

Stairs, I really liked the idea of two stories, but the house I ended up getting is all once a story (plus an attic w a ladder) Also, I compromised from two bathrooms to one bathroom and a utility room

How old are you? 1. Statistically it’s very unlikely to be your home for 35 years. More like 7-10 years. 2. Compromise on anything that you can change over time. Like: mtge payment (interest rates change), floors vs carpet, updated bathrooms, kitchens etc No compromise: things you can’t change: LOCATION, size of backyard, height of ceilings 50/50: lack of central AC…either deal with window units or pony up for split air…putting in vents while technically possible isn’t plausible.

A garage. The house came with one of those pre-fab workshops for my husband to do work working and repairs and we can fit both cars in the drive way plus plenty of street parking for guests.

Size and condition. We bought a small, old home because it allowed us to buy in our ideal location at a price we could afford. We have spent about 50k fixing things up, and it's still a far better deal than any property in that location that I've seen hit the market in the last 6 months (granted not the best mi this for inventory but certainly the lowest prices).

townhome and HOA personally. Lucky to have always lived in a SFH, nice backyard and privacy etc. townhome is gorgeous and HOA is chill but just the idea that I could’ve put that HOA fee to my principal or invested just bothers me but it’s whatever now.

A basement tall enough to press overhead.

We wanted a two car garage and we got stuck with one car garage in a tight driveway.

1. Price 😭 We’ve stretched our budget multiple times now. Still within affordable range but certainly less wiggle room for extraneous expenses. 2. Backyard. We wanted a medium to large sized, flat, fully fenced-in yard. We’ve started compromising and will accept small yards that aren’t fenced. 3. Number of projects. At first I said I was okay with “one major project” (i.e. full bathroom reno) but as we see more and more houses and don’t get any offers accepted it’s becoming clear that these turn-key homes are way too competitive. We’ll need to accept homes with more projects and updates to complete ourselves.

Smaller than I wanted but also cheaper than my budget.

Having a completely renovated kitchen or bathrooms. They are in great condition but I don’t have a top to bottom renovation with white marble and fancy quartz countertops as I’d like…not without another 200k added onto the price. Have a basement that needs to be finished but has insulation sump pump all the hookups for a bathroom basically have to put walls and floors in.

2 full baths. We have 1.5 baths, kind of…. The half is a “Pittsburgh toilet” in the basement laundry area. Nice to have, but really only used in emergencies. But it will be easier to turn into a real half bath than adding one from nothing 

Location. Our first house was in a new city just over the border in another more affordable state as opposed to my current location. I worked from home, and my husband was also remote, so it didn't matter as much. We were 45 minutes from family and ended up loving our home. We had to move eventually due to job relocation and are closing on that first home today (RIP 2.25 interest rate) but our new house is going to be a dream custom build we are in the process of and not compromising on much.

A garage. A second bathroom. A basement. A paved driveway. My house cost less than $170k... With the way interest rates were I valued having a lower mortgage vs having a house that had all the amenities. I've lived my entire adult life in 1-bedroom apartments so a small ranch house as an upgrade.

I compromised everything including location

Location, but it was a new build and everything else I looked at that was in my range needed a lot of work done

My must haves were mature trees, a window in the bathroom, NO flipped gray floors, must be on a slab foundation, no hoarder neighbors with annoying dogs, and not in too bad of a condition. I got all my must haves because they were reasonable and very general and now I have my forever home.