6 Steps for Prioritizing Your Wants and Needs in a Home

You may have been pre-approved and know what you can afford, so it’s time to take your home search to the next phase. But the hunt for your home will stall rapidly if you don’t know exactly what you're looking for — or perhaps more importantly, what your non-negotiables are.

Before you visit another open house or take a tour with an agent, pause to make a list of your needs and wants. Your requirements will likely change as you learn more about your options. Proximity to the beach may start as a priority, but you may later decide a short drive to the water is bearable. Unless you have an unlimited budget, it’s likely you’ll need to make compromises along the way.

Below, we’ve outlined a list of steps and tips to help you pinpoint what you like and don’t like about your current home, so you can find more comfort and pleasure in your next home. You can rank specific home features as “Must Have,” “Like to Have” or “Don’t Care” using this printable house hunting checklist. Then, you can refer to this checklist when you tour a home and add notes in our Touring Hub feature (more on that below).

1. Learn what you can afford

Getting your finances in order before searching for your home can make all the difference in a competitive market. Determining your budget and how much financial wiggle room you have can help put your must-haves on your house hunting checklist more clearly into view. Ask yourself:  

• Are you pre-approved for a mortgage? If you're not there yet, we can show you how and why to get pre-approved.
• What’s your price range? (Try our BuyAbility tool below if you're not sure.)
• How much do you have saved for a down payment? What about hidden costs like future repairs?
• Are you willing to potentially get a better deal by doing your own home  renovations or do you want a turnkey property? (This quiz might help you decide.)

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2. Consider your current lifestyle, but don't forget to plan for the future

You may have a picture-perfect home in mind, or you may not know where to even start when it comes to imagining your future place to live. It may help to first consider your basic needs and non-negotiables in a home. Begin by considering where you live now — what are your favorite things about your home, and what do you need to change? Think about whether:

• You need space for a future nursery or a home office
• You need any special features for your pets like a fenced-in yard
• Wheelchair access or limited stairs is important to you
• You need a space for a car or is street parking sufficient
• Walkability is important to you
• You plan on changing jobs in the next one-to-two years

3. Pick your preferred home style and type

Once you have the basics figured out, it can help lay the groundwork for determining what features you want in a house. Consider the different types of houses on the market in the neighborhoods where you want to buy, and remember you can use keywords when searching for homes on Zillow to help narrow down your options. Ask yourself these questions (and make sure your answers match up with what you have noted on your house hunting checklist):

• How many stories do you want?
• Do you want to live in a townhouse, condo or single-family house? Read about the pros and cons of condos vs single-family homes.
• Could you live in a historic home?
• How many bedrooms and bathrooms?
• Want a guest room?
• What type of flooring do you like?
• What architectural styles do you like best?
• What’s your favorite room, and what makes spending time there enjoyable?
• If you have an outdoor space, do you enjoy spending time there?
• Do you enjoy taking care of a yard or feel burdened by it (be honest)?

4. Choose a location

You can change your paint colors to refresh the feel of your home, or add an extension to increase your square footage, but you can’t alter where your home is located. Whether you're house hunting in person or browsing listings on the Zillow app, it’s easy to get caught up in a home's features, but you should also consider your surroundings.

Ask yourself these questions, and then read our guide to choosing a neighborhood for more tips.

• Do you prefer urban, suburban or rural?
• What city do you want to live in?
• Do you want easy access to highways or public transportation?
• How important is the view?
• Can you sleep easily with traffic noise?
• Do you want to be involved in community activities?
• Are there parks within walking or biking distance?
• Do the property taxes and/or HOA fees fit your budget?

5. Get to know the neighborhood

Think you’ve found the perfect home in the perfect area? Before buying, it’s still always a good idea to explore the neighborhood and ask yourself the following: 

• Are you happy with your neighborhood?
• Are there enough activities going on around you — or too many?
• Do you feel happy with your commute?
• Do you have to travel far for basics such as groceries or a doctor’s appointment?

6. Document your visit

When you’re ready to see a home in person, download the Zillow app to request a tour and we’ll match you with a local expert to schedule a showing. To prepare for your tour, head to your Touring Hub (you can find the Touring Hub by viewing your saved homes and then clicking “Manage tours” at the top of your screen). In the Touring Hub, you can jot down notes ahead of your tour — things you might want to add here include highlights from your house hunting checklist and any questions you have for the agent. You can also add tags that help you remember what you loved about the home (example: high ceilings, en suite, storage).

During your tour, you can continue to take notes in the Touring Hub and follow a step-by-step walkthrough checklist in the app. This is a good time to ask yourself, do you need to re-evaluate any of your must-haves? Or does this home check all of your boxes? Get a feel for the home and consider anything you may have left off of your list. Remember, paint can be replaced and staged furniture will change, but there are aspects that can’t change so easily:

• Is there enough space or too much space?
• Where could you use more space?
• How would you describe the layout?
• Do you like the fixtures and finishes?
• Are you happy with the windows (enough natural light, well-placed, too sunny)?
• Does the home have curb appeal?
• Does the home have adequate parking?

When you track all of your notes in your Touring Hub for each home you tour, you can use the home comparison tool to view up to five of your saved homes, complete with notes and tags, side-by-side.

Now that you know what you're looking for, connect to a local agent to help you find it. Happy house hunting!