Spin-Off of House Hunter Thread: Must Have Home Features

[ronandannette]

If you were looking to relocate, what features MUST a home have to be workable for you? We’re talking about a place you can realistically afford and would actually live in - not “wishlist” stuff. We’re considering a move and if we do, it will be a step down (condo to condo), but there are some things that are non-negotiable.

• Two full bathrooms, at least one with a bathtub and both with vanities (no pedestal sinks)
• Fireplace
• Laundry room (not always a given in condos)
• Adequate dining space for an eight-top table (we do entertain quite a bit)
• Private outdoor space (balcony or patio)
• Adequate storage
• Two parking spaces (preferably indoors)
• Elevator (if it’s an apartment complex)

 

[RedAngie]

A mini refrigerator in my master bedroom closet.

 

[loves to dive]

We would love to downsize. My must haves if we did.

2 bedrooms (3 better so one could be an office).
2 full baths.
Eat in kitchen, we rarely use our dining room but do eat at the kitchen table all the time.
Front porch with enough space for at least 2 chairs and covered.
Laundry room/pantry.
Garage but would put up with anything that was covered all the way to the house and big enough for at least 2 cars.
Parking for 2 cars and one big A truck.
Probably wouldn't do a condo since hubby hates HOAs so enough driveway/yard space to park our 5th wheel (right now we have to pay to store it because our driveway is too steep and the darn HOA doesn't allow it any way).
A FP would be nice but not a deal breaker.
Either a basement for our hot tub or a desk area in back that could be fenced for privacy.
No high ceilings, right now we have vaulted ceilings and it's impossible to keep cool in the summer and warm in the winter.
I'm not a fan of open floor plans, I don't like hearing the kitchen sink every time hubby is running it and don't really need to see the dirty dishes all the time.

 

[RedAngie]

We bought a condo in a beachfront high rise in Ocean City, MD and the following were requirements.

Two full bathrooms
In unit laundry
Elevator
Balcony
Adequate parking

Parking is outdoors, fireplace wasn’t even a consideration, and storage was a bit tight for the size of the condo. The building does have storage units that can be rented.

 

[NAB]

Our next home hopefully will be a bungalow. We aren’t getting any younger and are empty nesters.

ensuite

door to garage from inside of house

fireplace

kitchen big enough for kitchen table or have dining room for one , use our kitchen table everyday.

white kitchen all my cabinets in the house is brown/red maple now

good size yard fenced in for son’s dog when they come.

no renovations needed

edit: husband would love a driveway long enough to bring our fifth wheel home over summer.

 

[Boopuff]

We'd look for a ranch style home, 3 bedrooms, min 2 bath. Full basement. 3 car garage if not 2 car and some property. DH would love a pole-barn for a workshop space. No HOA, no neighbors (LOL)... ah to dream.

 

[Babs Johnson]

A fireplace would likely be a deal breaker for me now. We probably haven’t used ours in 20 years. I’m afraid to open the damper; a dead squirrel might plop out.

 

[CdnCarrie]

Our family home to raise kids

-2 living spaces on main floor (living room/dining room)
-3 bathrooms
-attached double garage
-dining room big enough for family dinners (20ish people)

Next home (if and) when we downsize to condo (maybe 10years)

-indoor parking
-insuite laundry
-dishwasher
-balconey
-2 bedrooms

 

[robinb]

We have been thinking of purchasing a home/condo to snowbird in for a while. My must-haves are:

* Must be turn-key. We are not handy and I don't want to pay more to have a place renovated/updated.
* At least 2 bedrooms, preferably 3. My DH is still working (from home) and talks loudly all day. He needs his own office with a door that closes.
* Two bathrooms. The main bathroom needs to have a walk-in shower.
* Outdoor living area, one that we could have a grill. A communal grill would be OK too but I would still need my own balcony/yard with a reasonable view.
* A garage because we need a place to plug in our car. We have an electric hybrid and we will eventually transition to an all-electric car.
* Single story. My home has two stories and I have bad knees. Going up and down the stairs multiple times a day is getting old.
* Elevator if it's a condo, see above.

 

[lovesmurfs]

We're planning to move somewhere warmer -- still in our "starter" home. I have some idea as to what I want:

• 3 bedrooms, minimum (I need an office, DH needs an office, and we realized early on in the pandemic that it can't be the same room).
• 2 car garage
• 2 sinks in master bathroom
• Single story. Don't necessarily mind a condo, but DH is a trumpet player...
• Laundry room
• Refrigerator with ice machine
• Outside area to sit and relax (lanai if we do Florida--not sure where at this point)

 

[BlueStarryHat]

Smaller, much smaller. I currently live in a four bedroom 2 1/2 bath house with a full finished basement, and I feel it's too big. I live with my aunt, who has lived there over forty years and won't hear of downsizing. She wants to be "carried out feet first." I'd be happy in a little house with only one or two bedrooms. I would like it to be one floor, and have a lot more counter space in the kitchen than we have now. I like to cook, and there's never enough room. I'd even be content in a small studio apartment.

 

[barkley]

that the bald eagle that's returned for the spring/summer months and has been flying in my backyard all weekend is willing to relocate with me

 

[DLgal]

We won't move until we buy. And we won't buy until we find a house that meets our "must have" requirements which are:

-4 bedrooms
-2+ full baths
-A bonus room or large loft
-An actual door between the master bedroom and the master bathroom (or the structural ability to easily add a door)
-Attached non tandem garage
-Coat closet (this sounds stupid, but a LOT of new homes are being built without them and I can't understand why)
-An entry foyer or hallway (again, something that is going away with new construction...front doors now frequently open right into the living room area.)
-A large kitchen island that can seat at least 3 (we rarely eat at our dining table)
-NO YARD to care for
-An HOA (not a fan of non HOA neighborhoods)
-Access to a community pool within walking distance

Those are the must haves.

The "wish list" is more aesthetic/functional, and are upgrades we would make on our own if they weren't present at purchase:

-Soft/auto close drawers in the kitchen and bathrooms
-A large walk in kitchen pantry
-A wet bar in the loft/bonus room
-Built in shelves in the living/great room and bonus room
-Wood look tile floors
-Plantation Shutters
-2 person walk in shower with dual shower heads

 

[Praying Colonel]

In 2021 we moved down from 4 BR/4 BA/3200 sq ft (including finished basement) to 2 BR/2 BA/1200 sq ft, no basement. We'd like to have a 3rd BR and a little more interior space so DW could have a dedicated craft room and we could still have a guest room. Also our floor plan has no dedicated dining area and it would be nice to have something, even if it was relatively small.

 

[flyingdumbo127]

God willing should my dad and I be able to afford a move one day, aside from a quiet safe, neighborhood street and building, my absolute musts would be that the place be well maintained and in all ways (structure, gas, water, heating, cooling, you get the idea) up to code, safe, and inspected at last once a year. Same with fire and carbon monoxide dectors.

Convenient to church, supermarket, doctors/dentists, Target/Walmart, etc.

Entryway that would ideally be part of a mud type room with a place to sit down, take of shoes, hang jackets, etc. A table of some type to set down groceries or other purchases. Storage.

2 bedrooms 1.5 baths is really all we need. Would love an additional room or two to use as a music room for my dad, ideally with some sound insulating and office/library.

Laundry ideally in unit or a clean and maintained building laundry room.

Lots of Natural light.

A sunroom or breakfast nook would be lovely. Place for a small kitchen table. Pantry!

Some private outdoor space that would allow for planted flowers, a small Christmas and or other tree to grow, and maybe even a rescue dog to play. Would love to have a deck or small outdoor dining table.

2 indoor garage parking spots.

Ground floor unit and one story, 1 1/2 stories we would consider.

We would prefer to not have the responsibility of landscaping/repairs all on us so either apartment, condo, or some type of HOA.

Meantime, how thankful I am for the roof and shelter we do have

 

[kymom99]

We'd look for a ranch style home, 3 bedrooms, min 2 bath. Full basement. 3 car garage if not 2 car and some property. DH would love a pole-barn for a workshop space. No HOA, no neighbors (LOL)... ah to dream.

You just described my new house!

 

[tvguy]

If you were looking to relocate, what features MUST a home have to be workable for you? We’re talking about a place you can realistically afford and would actually live in - not “wishlist” stuff. We’re considering a move and if we do, it will be a step down (condo to condo), but there are some things that are non-negotiable.

• Two full bathrooms, at least one with a bathtub and both with vanities (no pedestal sinks)
• Fireplace
• Laundry room (not always a given in condos)
• Adequate dining space for an eight-top table (we do entertain quite a bit)
• Private outdoor space (balcony or patio)
• Adequate storage
• Two parking spaces (preferably indoors)
• Elevator (if it’s an apartment complex)

2 bathrooms. A tub is nice, but I think we have used our tub once in the 10 years since we remodeled the bathrooms.
Fireplace. We used to heat with ours but last year put in an electric insert. Wood is too expensive as is natural gas, and we have no burn days here, so the days you most often would use it, you legally can't.
Agree on laundry room ,dining space, private outdoor space and storage.
Parking, minimum three car garaged.
No need for an elevator, I would never buy anything but a single story house.
I would add, an all electric house. Natural gas is dirty and expensive and dangerous.

 

[sksjasams]

We have been looking to buy for months now. The market and inventory here is terrible.

Our must-haves:
Same town we currently live in
Single story/ranch style
2 car attached garage (no more than 1 or 2 steps down)
3 bedrooms and an office space (or 4th bedroom)
At least 2 1/2 bathrooms
1st floor laundry
Finished basement (prefer one of the bed/bath down there)
Smaller yard
Our own mailbox in front of our house
Not too outdated

We need a walk-in shower in the primary suite, but we could put that in.
We would prefer no fireplace.
Definitely no well or septic.

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

I'd be probably getting pretty close to what we have only older due to the pricing/housing market here. Sq footage probably smaller though but not too too much smaller. Part of this is because of what we could sell our house for.

Probably wouldn't have 5 bedrooms and 4 baths but could get probably a 4 bedroom 4 bath home.

I think the only con that we would have is too open concept which is why we put a divider type wall in our house when it was built. That was a non-negotiable when the house was built but unless you're going for much older homes (which we wouldn't want to do) you're going to get open concept here.

I don't think we would purchase an old old house like for example my mom's house was built in the 1960s, going from a 2014 built home to something like that would be a con and unlikely to even look at.

 

[Lumpy1106]

I would add, an all electric house. Natural gas is dirty and expensive and dangerous.

Sorry, but you and I cannot be friends. An electric stovetop is no way to cook. You can just try (and fail) and pry my 1958 O'Keefe & Merritt stove from my cold dead hands - not giving it up.

An (often overlooked) absolute must for me is a floored-in attic with a pull down ladder.