Top Tips for House Hunting Online

Hunting for a new luxury NJ home online is a great place to start your search. In fact, a National Association of REALTORS® study found that 90% of home buyers use the internet to look for homes at some point during their home search. However, this should not be your “end all be all” to house hunting. Good listing agents are excellent at highlighting the best features of a home. But keep in mind that there may be more to it than meets the eye. To make the most of your time and efforts and gather a well-rounded picture when house-hunting online, keep the following three things in mind.

Top Tips for House Hunting Online

Stay Up to Date

When you start your search, make sure you find a site that pulls up-to-date listings directly from the multiple listing service (MLS) where real estate agents actively post their most current homes for sale. Many online resources update less often or fail to remove listings that are off the market. This makes it more difficult to sort through the clutter.

Pictures Can be Deceiving

Real estate photographers are experts at showing a home in the best possible light. Many pros use tools and strategies to boost appeal, such as a fisheye lens to make areas look larger and creative editing to make colors and textures really pop. Often, though, listings will not contain photos of unappealing parts of the home, like small closets or outdated bathrooms. That’s where my final tip factors into the house-hunting equation.

See It to Believe It

Once you find what appears to be your dream Westfield area home online, call up your experienced local real estate agent and schedule a showing. You want to take the opportunity to vet the home in person and explore every part of it before beginning the offer process. Your real estate agent will help you cover all your bases and will ask questions that you may not have thought of.

Scott Gleason, CRS at Coldwell Banker Realty – East, NJ Luxury Homes