Buying a house can be one of the most challenging procedures in adult life.  With such a financial commitment at stake, most people take the process seriously.  However, the complexity of the house buying process can mean that it is easy to overlook some peripheral considerations that are nonetheless fundamentally important, such as the cost of arranging home insurance from Legal & General.  Indeed, aside from cost, this one issue alone can get quite involved.  The type of policy that will best suit your needs when arranging home insurance with Legal & General will depend on a variety of factors, chief of which is whether you will live in or rent out the property.  Leaving aside the issue of home insurance, which can be properly addressed through taking proper time for research, we will now look at some of the most commonly overlooked ‘side issues’ that can prove to be key when evaluating a house prior to purchase.  

Many people who are not involved in property on a professional basis make the mistake of focusing solely on the house and immediate grounds when decision making, ignoring the wider neighbourhood.  While sensible folks will know to avoid high crime areas, there is much more to consider than simply selecting a nice neighbourhood.  In fact, good neighbourhoods can often be subject to issues specific to the fact that people want to live there.

Access to quality schooling is a prime example.  Desirable neighbourhoods, especially those that have recently expanded due to development, may be in the position where the best schools in the area are oversubscribed, and competition to enrol children is fierce.  While this may not seem to be a concern for the young, single professional person, the fact is that many others who may potentially want to live in the property at some point may find this to be a key issue.  And this means that when the future scenarios of either renting of reselling the property are on the cards, certain kinds of potential tenants or buyers – in this case families with young children – may have second thoughts.

The same considerations apply to other local amenities, and indeed the transport infrastructure in the area.  How easy is it to reach the nearest freeway, or drive into town?  If you are looking to buy an apartment, rather than a house, what are the parking facilities like?

While these questions are perhaps more likely to be addressed if you are buying the house to live in, they are often overlooked by those looking to rent out the property, especially those new to the landlord game.

If you are buying the house as a landlord, try and think about your target market.  Who will want to stay there?  Check out the rental commanded by similar properties on the neighbourhood.  Are there already plenty of vacant and available homes of a similar quality out there?  Perhaps the overarching theme of this advice is that due care and attention must be paid if you are to address all of the issues that might affect rental and resale price.  With the amount of cash riding on the deal, it only makes sense not to rush into a purchase