Why You Shouldn’t Wait to See Apartments In Person

You’ve spoken with your mortgage broker, you know what kind of apartment you want and you know what neighborhood you want to be in. Now it’s time to start looking at apartments with your agent! Exciting!

You probably have a checklist of things you want in an apartment – a certain number of closets, a certain square footage, outdoor space, a specific kitchen layout, etc. With so much information available at your fingertips, it’s easy to simply look at listings online or sent by your agent and wait until just the “right” apartment pops up to get out there  and see anything in person. This is especially understandable if you have a very busy schedule (which, let’s face it, most of us do). But when you’re first starting your search, this may not be the wisest approach. Here are a few reasons why:

Market Education

As a new buyer, it’s important to educate yourself about the market. Sure, online listings and market statistics are very helpful, but the fastest way to truly understand your specific market is to go out and see properties in person. This will help you understand why two or three apartments that look very similar online are priced differently.

Online vs. In Person Differences

Seeing properties in person is a very different experience from seeing them online. An apartment could look better (or worse) than indicated by the photos. An apartment could feel a lot larger than it seems based solely on the floorplan. When viewing places in person, you’ll also see things that the photos didn’t show – such as the fact that a bathroom might need some repairs, or that the second bedroom has more possibilities than you originally thought.

Fine Tuning Your Search

Finally, one of the biggest advantages to seeing properties in person is that it will help you fine tune your search. You might realize that you don’t like the feel of certain types of buildings as much as you thought you would. You might realize you need more or less space. You might even realize that something you thought was a “must have” isn’t really a must have at all. And finally, you might discover that you wanted things you didn’t know you would want.

So once you’re ready to start your search, hit the ground running and get out to some open houses and appointments with your agent! And of course, if you don’t have an agent yet, feel free to contact me 🙂