Five Things to Consider with Your Next Home’s Location

Location, Location, Location. We’ve all heard the famous real estate saying. It conveys that where your house is located may be more important than almost every other attribute.

It is the reason why a small, dilapidated beach cottage that is barely 1,000 square feet will easily sell for over $1 million (sometimes more depending on what beach).

Here are 5 things to consider with LOCATION that you might not think about:

🔥Fire Zones – Is the property close to a high fire zone? The home could come with some defensible space requirements, and the cost of homeowners insurance could be high or unavailable in certain areas.

💦Flooding – With the recent heavy rain storms, many properties experienced flooding near or on their property. Are you on the south side or below street level or is the home on a hill?

🚗Private Road – Several neighborhoods in SoCal have private roads. Although the privacy of that type of street is desirable, you may have maintenance responsibilities or different parking restrictions.

🚦 Busy Thoroughfares – You can’t move the house once you buy it. If you are writing up an offer on a busy street, I encourage buyers to visit at different times of day to see how difficult it would be to get in or out of the driveway and to get a better understanding of how much traffic there will be.

🏘 Future Developments – Is the home near the Gold Line? A new housing development? Is the neighborhood being built into mixed-use buildings with storefronts? Investigate what is happening close to the property to see what it will be like to live there long term.

Whether you are considering purchasing a home and want more information on the California Dream for All Program, or you are about to offload an investment property or inherited home, call me today!

—Melissa Perez