Considerations to Make Prior to Purchasing a Vacation Home
If you find yourself constantly traveling to a location for a vacation, you might be tempted to purchase a second home for temporary use. Vacation homes can be a great way to save money; however, people often purchase them without giving it a second thought. This can to many problems they were not anticipating. Here are a few things you should consider before running and purchasing that second home.
Consider Actual Costs
While purchasing that vacation home may sound like it will save you money, the costs are a lot higher than many people realize. You want to make sure the house is one you can afford, as it will not liquidize if you run into financial struggles. You will also still be responsible to cover the costs of HOAs, utilities, insurance, and property taxes. There is also the thought of completely furnishing this home for use.
Consider Renting
If you are only in that vacation home for a short period of time, consider renting it out to others. This will also mean you need to think about the cleaning of the home, any advertisement, and logistics of handling disputes. There are rental programs you can join, but they will take a percentage of your rent so set a rental amount that will make sure you come out ahead on the costs. You also have the option to simply hire a rental company to handle everything for you. In addition, make sure you read the HOA or condo association rules so you know whether you can even rent the house out or what their requirements are.
Consider How Often You Actually Visit
One of the big things to think about prior to purchasing a vacation home is do you actually travel to that destination as often as you think? You want to make sure that you are going to use the home to make the purchase worth it. Sometimes it can feel that you are traveling more than you are, so track that before you jump the gun on buying a second home.
Plan for the Emergency Repairs
Even if you only plan to visit the home three months out of the year, you want to make sure someone is regularly checking into the home. The vacation house is going to be like any other house where pipes will break and mother nature will wreak havoc. Get in contact with the locals to have a list of repairmen that you trust to get your house back into shape if an emergency arises. Finally, make sure you have that home protected in the times no one is present. Make sure you have timers for lights and find a way to have vehicles randomly park in the driveway so would-be thieves think someone is home. A security system is also a must.
If you travel to a certain place often, a vacation home may be worth the investment. It is just important to make all of the above considerations prior to making such a large investment.
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