3 Common Things You Can Ignore When Home Shopping

In your search for a new home, you may come across some weird and gross situations. For example, you might find that someone has a treadmill in their kitchen or that they’ve included a picture of the bathroom with the toilet seat up in the listing. You might even see avocado-green appliances reminiscent of the 1970s, but these kinds of things shouldn’t sway you from making an offer on a home if you love it.

Just because the current owners see fit to use the home’s rooms for something other than their intended purpose or they don’t keep as clean a home as you shouldn’t be a dealbreaker. Try to overlook it and envision the home as you would use it. Remember, sellers aren’t required to stage their homes or even clean them, for that matter, before putting them up for sale. With that said, here are three things you can ignore when searching for your new home.

1. Weird Wallpaper And Dirty Carpet

Many buyers prefer a move-in ready home where everything is fresh and new. Unfortunately, not everyone is willing to apply fresh paint or new carpeting before putting their home up for sale, so it’s up to you as the buyer to make these updates once you take possession of the house.

The good news is it’s easy and relatively inexpensive to paint and replace the carpet, so if the home you’re looking at has weird wallpaper or dirty carpet, just overlook it. These updates can be completed in less than a week and you can do them before you move into the home.

2. Rooms Used For Something Other Than Their Intended Purpose

If you’ve looked at several houses, there’s a good chance you’ve seen rooms used for something other than their intended purpose. For instance, homeowners often turn formal dining rooms into home offices and small bedrooms into walk-in closets. While you may not use the rooms this way, this is what works for the current owners of the home.

Try to ignore how the current owners are using the rooms and envision how you’d use them instead. It’ll take little effort to return these rooms to their intended purpose once you move in.

3. A Strong Seller Presence

Some homes are simply too personalized for a buyer to fully envision his or her belongings in the home. Or sometimes, the sellers themselves are present at showings, which can be uncomfortable for the buyers. Either way, if the sellers aren’t willing to compromise, you can use their over-bearing nature to your advantage and possibly get the home for less than the asking price.

As you search for your next home, you may come across some weird or gross things in the homes you tour. If you love the home, try to overlook these things as you can easily change them once you move in.