Buying a new home can be really stressful. There are lots of things to consider, what neighborhood or city do you want to be in? How many stories should the home be? What about bedrooms, bathrooms, or garages?
Buying a home as a multi-gen family can be even more complicated. It’s not just what you want in your home, but what everyone wants and needs. That’s why I’m sharing 8 things to look for when buying your multi-gen home:
- Find a realtor you trust. If you can find one that has experience in finding homes for multi-gen families that will be golden. But if not, look for a realtor that is experienced. Recommendations from people you trust are always good . You also want a realtor that listens to what you and your family need. A good realtor will show you different properties and listen to your feedback to know what they should look for in future properties.
- Bedrooms. Know how many bedrooms you need, but be open to what constitutes a bedroom. If the home has 3 bedrooms and an office, don’t discount it because it’s not listed as a 4 bedroom home. That office may function well as a bedroom. Similarly, if you need 4 bedrooms and an office, but see a 5 bedroom home, that 5th bedroom can be your office.
- Bathrooms. Bathrooms are just as important as bedrooms to consider. Think about how many you realistically need in your new home. How many people are comfortable sharing a bathroom? Know ahead of time what absolutely won’t work so you don’t waste time looking at properties that aren’t right for your family.
- Kitchen. Most people want a nice kitchen, even if they don’t cook a lot. Rather than think of what countertops you want or the appliances you’re dreaming of, think about the layout of the kitchen. Do you expect that multiple people will want to cook at the same time? If so, that galley kitchen may not be the best layout for you. You’ll need something that allows for different workstations so you aren’t tripping over each other. Or maybe one person will do all the cooking. If that’s the case, let that person decide the layout that will work best for them.
- Yard. How big of a lot do you want your house to be on? Do you want a really small or even no yard? Or do you want some room to roam? While it’s a good idea to have an idea of how big of yard you want, a lot depends on the availability of homes that are in the price range you need. You may need to be open to the yard not being exactly what you want if the inside has everything you need.
- Parking spaces. One thing we wished our house had is a 3 car garage. We have a lot of adults in the household, which means more than the normal 2 cars. Look at the parking spaces available in the home to make sure it suits what you need. If you live in an area that you have to pay for parking, that is also something to think about.
- One or two stories. Does your family prefer a one story house or two? Depending on the size of the home you need, it may be easier to find everything you’re looking for in a two story home. Think about possible mobility issues – are stairs going to be a problem for anyone in the house now or in the future? Maybe a one and half story home will have what you need.
- Doorway sizes. Does anyone in the home use a wheelchair or use a walker? Older homes tend have more narrow door frames. Getting through them in a wheelchair or a walker is challenging and sometimes impossible. Newer homes tend to have wider door openings to the bedroom areas. However doors to bathrooms, especially if the toilet is in a separate room, are typically not wide enough to accommodate wheelchairs and walkers. While you can remodel to widen doorways, this can get very expensive if you have an older home.
I hope these tips help you on your search for the perfect multi-gen home. Buying a home can be stressful, but having these 8 things in mind will help make the process easier. What’s your number one item in your multi-gen home?