Buying a home is a huge step. Not only is it a major accomplishment at an age, but for most, it is the realization of a lifelong dream becoming a reality. For some people, making this dream come true requires a little team work. If you’ve been thinking about buying a house with your fiancé, we have some tips and tricks for you. Here’s our list of things you should keep in mind if you’re shopping for a home with your fiancé.
1.Put It All on the Table
Buying a property with your fiancé takes a session of brutal honesty. No matter how much you think you know someone, it changes when you actually move in with them. Before making such a major commitment, talk about all of the things you expect when sharing a home. If you have a list of deal breakers, write them down and give them to your friend to review long before looking up moving companies and unpacking boxes together. It is important that you’re on the same page and know exactly what you’re signing up for.
2.Look at the Credit Report
There’s a thin line between trusting a dear boyfriend or girlfriend and ending up in a world of debt. Before you decide to buy a house with someone, make sure you take a long hard look at their credit report. While credit history isn’t everything, it does give you a great idea of someone’s spending habits and lets you know if you’ll be carrying the bulk of the weight when it comes to a mortgage and other bills. This is pretty standard for major purchases so don’t worry about your friend taking it personally.
3.Protect Important Documents
Whether you opt for a simple folder that you keep in a backpack or dedicated a file cabinet in your home office to it, having a central location for all important documents is incredibly important. Just think, buying a home for one person involves social security cards, passports, bank statements, credit reports and much more. Now imagine doubling these documents for two people. By keeping these private documents safe, secure and easily accessible, it will only expedite the home buying process.
4.Create an Inventory
When moving in with your fiancé, having a clear inventory of items is essential to determine what belongs to who in the event of a split or legal woes. When you hire a quality moving company, they will have a detailed inventory of your household goods for you. It would be wise to ask for a copy of their inventory where you can simply initial your name next to the items that are yours on your moving day. This is especially important if you have rare artifacts or precious items like a grand piano. Even if it takes you longer than you anticipate, having an inventory of goods is always worth it.
5.Discuss a Potential Split
While no one wants to think about things going south, the fact is that it very well may happen. Life takes people in different places often so discuss what will happen if you two are no longer together for some reason or if one of you were to lose your job or had to relocate for any reason. Laying this groundwork ahead of time will make you both more confident about diving into the agreement.
6.Think About Renting First
If all of his feels a bit overwhelming or rushed, slow down and think about renting for a year first with your fiancé as a test trial. 12 months of living with someone in a rental is an excellent way to see if you really want to buy a house with them or not.
Once you find your dream home and you’re ready to go, reach out to one of our featured moving companies. They are professional movers, trained to handle any moving requests near or far.