Home Buyer Checklist - Free And Easy

Buying A House -- How To Use The HUD Home Buyer Scorecard

Everyone experiences this common dilemma when buying a home. We view houses without a system in place to compare. And it can cost us.

You probably know what follows. You visit several houses with your Realtor. At the end of the day, you walk back through your front door, satisfied with a few really special houses.

Kicking off your shoes, you settle into your favorite chair, pull out the fliers and suddenly feel confused. You can't remember if the floor plan you liked had the kitchen you preferred.

Where's the solution to keeping track of which house had what feature?

You will find buying a home is all about comparison.

Most likely, you will have already narrowed down your search to ones are similar in price. In fact if you have been preapproved for your home mortgage, most of the houses you preview will likely fall into a similar price range.

So you will need additional criteria other than price to avoid confusion.

In order to compare homes it is wise to have a system. The Department of Housing and Urban Development, or HUD as it is commonly called, has created a home buyer checklist. But before I explain how it works, I recommend including a digital camera as part of your previewing system.

With this in mind, your real estate agent is going to take you to see several houses based on criteria you provide. To remember each house, photograph the important attributes.

This way you can analyze comparable pictures.

First, take pictures leading up to the houses. Then photograph the entry ways, living areas, kitchens, and master bedroom suites.

Second take photos of the backyards and any unique features, for example a pool. Include pictures of undesirable features too.

Lastly photograph sources of potential problems, like roofs. There's no need for a ladder since you're taking the picture from the ground.

Keep in mind that if you are systematic in your approach, you will be able to easily compare pictures of the major rooms, the yards, extra features, and potential problems.

Now you need a home buyer checklist.

Because it is readily available, efficient and free, I recommend the HUD Home Buyer Scorecard.

Before you go on tour with your Realtor, print several copies of this home buyer checklist so that you have a scorecard for each individual house. At the top, write the address and list price for each home you are previewing. Then attach your pictures to the corresponding scorecard.

Are you asking what exactly is the HUD Home Buyer Scorecard? It is a home buyer checklist designed to remind you of important features in homes you preview. It allows you to score each feature with a good, average, or poor score.

Basically the home buyer checklist highlights features from four important categories everyone buying a home needs to consider.

Briefly the first category includes attributes from the house itself such as square feet and number of bedrooms to roof age and condition of gutters and downspouts. Score each one.

The second category compares items related to neighborhoods and focuses on the appearances of nearby homes and businesses, traffic conditions, pet restrictions, and garbage service.

Equally important, schools are the third category itemizing questions of age, condition, reputation, and curriculum.

Finally the last category for buying a home represents features pertaining to convenience. Using your home buyer checklist, score for proximity to grocery stores, doctors, day care, shopping malls, church and others.

Now use this system to analyze.

Simply take the photos of each house and attach them to your home buyer checklist. Next compare the photos and scorecards of one house to another. You will be able to easily analyze and decide which house is best for you.

Who says buying a home has to be confusing? For success in previewing homes, print your free home buyer checklist here. Good luck and happy shopping!

One additional thought! Out of courtesy to sellers, always ask before taking pictures.

Article No.133 by Kate Ford, real estate insider and author of Ask Kate. If you enjoyed this article, you will like our Choosing A Real Estate Agent also.