Scratching that itch

An idiom defined as: seeing a house that I’ve wanted to see for a long time (and probably won’t like but need to see it anyway so that I can cease thinking about it because if I don’t see it, I’ll always wonder about it and I won’t be able to move on the houses that better fit my wants/needs list until I see this house that probably isn’t going to work but I want to see it anyway.

Why see a house that we all know you’re not going to buy?

Simple: if a particular house or location is clouding your (the buyer’s) ability to best evaluate the market opportunities, it’s exceptionally useful to see that house or neighborhood and remove it from the equation.

There is immense value in seeing those houses that we all know/sense beforehand won’t work – doing so helps to put the good houses in relief and ultimately makes the home search more efficient.

That, and every house that we see together is another experience and another data point we will likely reference when evaluating the good houses.

“Remember that horrible house? It sold for $315K after 94 days. This one has been on the market for 6 days at $335K … better jump on it.

OR

Remember that horrible house? It sold for $315K after 94 days. This one is $367K and it’s been on for 7 weeks … we can probably wait.”

Data points. Experiences. Foundational knowledge. Scratching itches is valuable.

One caveat: Driving/walking/biking by a house before going to see it together is remarkably useful; looking at a house on google maps or street view is helpful to a certain degree, but seeing and smelling an area is much more telling.

Image courtesy of.