Buying a home is a big decision and a very big commitment. If you?re looking at luxury homes, the search and decision making process may be even more complex. Buying a luxury home, or any home, will probably be one of the biggest financial commitments you?ll ever make in your life.
Today, going about buying a home is very different than it used to be. Even if you?re looking at luxury homes or luxury real estate, your search and approach in this process may be very different now. Almost half of home buyers, 44 percent in fact, look online for their properties. Research indicates that Google searches for real estate have increased over 253 percent over the last four years. That?s a lot of action on the Net. Be it luxury homes or a more modest dwelling you?re looking for, internet research is the way to go for today?s buyer.
So, you might ask, do you need a real estate agent? Real estate agents can be very helpful whether you are selling a home or looking for homes for sale, but the web is a good first step. In fact, as many as11 searches are done by home searchers before they take real action on a real estate website. So you can do a lot of work and research on your own which can make dealing with a real estate agent even easier.
But luxury homes: that can be a different story. Let?s take a look. Maybe you are looking at luxury homes in a sunny location by the seaside. Or perhaps you?re interested in a luxury waterfront condo. Luxury homes and waterfront homes abound in Key West and in other warm, luxuriant climes. Although this may take additional research, you will enjoy finding just the right environment and real estate agent to help you, should you need it.
Even with luxury homes, you may be a first time home buyer. Thirty-two percent of home buyers looking for new homes are first time buyers. You could be one, and there are excellent benefits offered to first time buyers that your real estate agent may know about or can direct you to. It?s also interesting to note that, even if you are looking at luxury homes, 83 percent of all home buyers are looking for single family homes, and luxury homes certainly can qualify as single family homes. Of these potential buyers of single family homes, 49 percent of them with children check out the public schools in the neighborhood in which they are contemplating buying. Though this may not be the decision maker for those buying luxury homes, but it is a factor for many.
As you make this decision, know that home ownership still has a big draw. According to the National Association of Realtors, over 5, 250,000 homes were sold in 2015. And even though luxury homes factor into that, the average price of a home sold in 2017 was $263,800, up from 2016. So regardless of the size home you buy, luxury homes or not, count into the decision making factor that this is where and your family are going to live and call home perhaps for a long time.
