Nine areas of a home to check at open for inspections: Karin Derkley

In the  excitement of finding  your  (potential) dream home, the job of checking for all the  necessities, and  some niceties, can easily  be overlooked. I will cover some basic items you should look for in just  about every room or space in an average house or flat.

Checking for these key things will help  avoid  any last-minute panic when  you’re  signing  the  contract to buy  the  home, desperately trying to remember whether you checked the  water pressure or if the  oven  worked properly.

1. Kitchen

You spend a lot of time  in the  kitchen, so it’s vital to ensure this  area in your  new home is going to meet your  specific needs (even if you end  up renovating later). Here’s  a list of some key kitchen features to look for as you hunt around an open house:

Benchtops and splashbacks: Do you prefer granite benchtops and  glass  splashbacks, or laminate and  tiles? Check  the  condition of the  benchtops and  of the  grout and sealant around the  tiles,  sinks  and  splashbacks. Also check the  amount of bench space and  whether it provides you with  enough preparation room.

• Cooktop  and oven:  How will you heat your  food  — gas? electricity? induction heating? thermonuclear power? (Keep  in mind  electricity is more expensive than gas.)
• Extraction  fan/range hood:  Check  for an extraction fan – you’d  be amazed how  many  homes don’t  have  one,  and you often  can’t  install one  retrospectively. Also check the effectiveness of the  fan — and  the  noise level
• Fridge space:  Have a look at the  space for the  fridge.  Is it wide  or high  enough to fit the  fridge  you already own?
• Floors: What  are  the  floors covered with? Are you happy to care for a wooden floor,  or would  you prefer to quickly  mop tiles?  Avoid carpet!
• Hidden extras: Does the  kitchen come with  a dishwasher already installed — or at least have  a space (preferably next to the  sink)  to install one  easily?  What  about some standing room? I don’t  know about you,  but  people at my dinner parties always end  up hanging around while I finish preparing the  food.
• Power  and phone points:  How many  power points have been installed, and  where are  they  placed? Are there enough points to accommodate a fridge,  toaster, kettle, microwave and  other less-frequently used appliances?
• Is there somewhere to plug in a phone or modem?
• Storage  solutions: There’s lots  to store in a kitchen, so inspect the  pantry and  the  number (and size)  of the  cupboards. Make sure you don’t  lose  too  much cupboard space to a hot-water service, dishwasher pipes or sink plumbing.

2. Bathroom

• The  bathroom in your  new property might  have  last  been renovated in the  1950s, meaning every item  is a fetching shade of pink.  But if your  budget won’t stretch to renovating the bathroom as soon as you move  in, you’ll be stuck with  the current fittings for a little  while.  Examine  this  list of features to see  whether the  bathroom is functional for your  needs:
• Bath/shower: Does the  bathroom come with  a bath, shower, both or a “shub”  (shower over  a tub)? If there’s only a shower, can  you live without long baths after  a hard day  at work? Or are  you more of a “four-minute shower” person? (And congratulations if you are,  given the  droughts we tend to have  in Australia!) If you have children, or are  planning to, having  a bath might  be a must-have. If a short but  sharp shower is important to you, remember to check the  water pressure.
• Bathroom vanity:  No, I’m not  talking  about spending too much time  in front  of the  mirror! I’m referring to the  sink and  cupboard unit  that’s fairly standard in a bathroom. Does it come with  a mirror? If the  vanity  doesn’t have in-built  drawers or cupboards, is there additional storage, or at least room to install a stand-alone set  of drawers to house all your  essential bits  and  pieces?
• Power  points:  Even if you’re  pretty low-maintenance, you probably use  a few electric appliances in the  bathroom, such as a hairdryer, electric toothbrush, shaver or hair straightener. Check  the  availability and  placement of power points. Or you might  be into  the  bare essentials and  not need any of this  at all.
• Steam clearing: You’ll need something to remove the steam while you’re  bathing, to prevent mould from appearing on the  bathroom walls.  Is there an extraction fan? At the  very  least, you’ll want  a window that opens — but  if the  bathroom’s on the  ground floor,  make  sure the window has  a lock to prevent unwanted visitors (human and  otherwise) from  creeping inside. Also check what  the window looks  out  on.
• Washing  machine taps: If there’s no separate laundry in the  house, or no communal laundry in the  apartment block, then you’ll probably find some washing machine taps in the bathroom. Check  that there’s enough space to fit your washing machine, and  some room to sort your  washing. In modern properties or renovations, you might  come across what’s  known  as a European laundry, which  usually means space for the  washing machine (and perhaps dryer) is tucked away  in a cupboard or in the  kitchen. Check  the space provided is sufficient.

3. Lounge

The  lounge is the  perfect place for entertaining guests and spending time  with  family. But what  if you move  in and  find there’s not  enough room for your  lounge suite? Here  are  some features to look for before you commit to buying a property:

• Extra space:  Lots of lounges flow on to balconies or into the  backyard. Does the  property have  doors or windows that allow you to bring  the  outside in?
• Heating  and cooling: Do you swelter in summer without air-conditioning or do you really feel the  cold  in winter? Or do you prefer to keep  your  gas and  electricity bills down?  Numerous heating and  cooling options are  available: Reverse-cycle or split-system air-conditioners, ducted heating and  cooling, open fire places, ceiling  fans,  hydronic heating, bar  heaters and  gas wall panels are  all possible. Check  out  the  heating and  cooling options provided and whether they  fit in with  your  requirements. If the  property doesn’t come with  any heating or cooling options, you can  always buy  a free-standing floor  fan and  heater.
• Flooring: Tiles,  floor  boards or carpet are  the  main  flooring options in a living area;  think  about what  works  best for your  location and  lifestyle (and whether you can  afford  to change the  current flooring, if it doesn’t suit  your  needs).
• TV and phone connections: Some people prefer to keep the  TV out  of the  lounge, but  if this  isn’t the  case for you, check for an aerial plug.  Paid  TV services may also  be a non-negotiable in your  household; if so, you’ll want  to see if the  cabling has  already been installed. (Don’t forget  to check for aerials and  satellite dishes outside!) Similarly, you may want  a phone in the  lounge and,  given the  rise of internet television, an internet connection in this  room could be very  handy too  if you want  to avoid  cables trailing through the  house or apartment.

4. Dining room

Older  properties usually have  a separate, or formal,  dining  room. If you do a lot of entertaining and  have  a large  dining  table, take some measurements of your  table and  chairs before  you head off to the  open home, to ensure it will fit into  the  dining  area.

If formal  dining  isn’t really your  style,  check whether another use  of the  separate dining  room is possible and  practical.

More  modern homes or renovations will often  have  open plan dining  areas, usually adjoined to the  kitchen, lounge or both. This  means that the  space is not  (usually) as restricted as a separate dining  room. Check  that the  flow of the  open plan space fits in with  your  lifestyle.

5. Bedrooms

When  looking  at the  main  bedroom of the  property, check the following:

• Clothes  storage:  You’re going to need to hang  up your clothes (unless you’re  a teenage boy  — in which  case, plenty of floor  space is probably your  best bet). Some wardrobes come with  built-in  shelving units, but  if the wardrobe installed only has  hanging space, check you can  fit a chest of drawers in the  room. If the  room has  no storage (sometimes the  case in older properties), you may need to purchase a free-standing wardrobe.
• Ensuite: For some, not  having  an ensuite isn’t a deal- breaker, but  if you have  children or often  have  guests staying, you may consider it to be. If this  is the  case, check whether the  bedroom has  an ensuite and  that it meets your  needs.
• Flooring: Carpet? Wooden floorboards? Remember that this  will affect  the  temperature of the  room throughout the  year,  so take  the  climate of your  location into consideration.
• Heating  and cooling: For maximum comfort in the  summer months, and  to stop you from  freezing in winter, don’t forget  to look for heating and  cooling systems, in whatever form  you prefer (air-conditioning, ceiling  fans,  under-floor heating and  so on).
• Phone and TV connections: If you like to watch the  TV in bed  or while you’re  getting dressed in the  morning, ensure the  bedroom has  an aerial plug.  You may also  want  a phone jack near the  bed.

For properties with  more than one  bedroom, apply most of the preceding points to the  second and  subsequent bedrooms.

If you’re  planning to turn one  of the  bedrooms into  a study, make  sure to check for sufficient power points for all your computer equipment.

6. Laundry

Many older and/or larger homes have  a separate laundry, and you may feel having  this  extra space is an added feature. If the property you’re  inspecting has  a separate area for laundry, here’s a list of what  to look for:

• Bench  space:  If you’ve  got a top-loading washing machine, then you may want  to look for extra bench space for folding  clothes, storing washing powders and  hosting a central repository of unmatched socks (where do the  other halves of the  sock  pairs go?!).
• Dryer brackets and ducting:  Bringing  your  own dryer? Investigate whether there are  brackets to attach the machine to the  wall, and  ducting to move  the  hot air outside.
• Sink and cabinet: A deep sink in the  laundry is useful for soaking and  rinsing — or bathing small  children if the property doesn’t have  a bath!  If you do have  children, check whether the  cabinet can  be secured, so you can store nasty liquids and  powders out  of harm’s way.

7. Garage

The  number of cars/bikes/jet skis  you own, or intend to own, will determine the  suitability of the  garage (if the  property comes with one). When  looking  at parking options, keep  the  following in mind:

• Parking  that comes with  apartment blocks:  In this situation, the  parking is usually shared, and  the  options will be allocated parks, or first-in,  first-serve. If you’re lucky,  there might  also  be a storage cage  for all those odds and  ends, like the  fake Christmas tree and  the  bicycle that you really must start using  more often… Check  the security and  lighting  in this  shared space.
• Parking  that comes with  houses or units: In a stand-alone property, the  parking options might  include a covered garage or a driveway. If the  property includes a covered garage, check how  secure it is and  whether it provides internal access. In some older properties, the  covered garages are  quite narrow, so check whether the  car  you have will fit, along  with  everything else  you’d  like to keep locked up and  under cover. If the  only parking option is the driveway, check how  many  cars it’s possible to fit.
• No parking  at all: If on-street parking is the  only option, check the  parking regulations in the  area — you might  need a permit to park  outside your  home, which  is an additional annual cost.

8. Backyard or balcony

Having a backyard is part of the  Great  Australian Dream,  right?  If the  property you’re  considering has  a backyard (or  a balcony), work  your  way through this  checklist of features:

• Barbecue: Another quintessential Australian feature — the barbie. If there isn’t a plumbed-in gas pipe  attached to the house, then you’ve  got a bit of freedom to move  your  barbecue around the  backyard. Check  what  options are  available. If you’re  looking  at cooking on a balcony, make  sure that it is well ventilated.
• Fences:  Whether you’ve  got pets or children, it’s essential to have  the  backyard fenced to stop runaways. Check  the condition of the  fence  and  find out  how  old it is. If the property has  a balcony, ensure that railings are  sufficient and  secure.
• Lighting  and power  points:  To enjoy  long summer evenings out  in the  backyard, you’ll need some lights  outside the house, or an easily  accessible power point to set  up some temporary lighting. After all, how  else  are  you going to string up fairy lights  at Christmas?
• Maintenance requirements: Do you dream of creating a backyard escape and  being  surrounded by trees and  plants, or do you prefer low-maintenance decking or pavers? Check  whether enough space is available, and  whether you’re  happy with  the  level of maintenance required.
• Somewhere to sit: Does the  property come with  a deck or paved area to put  some outdoor furniture? Or, at least, a flat bit of grass?

Washing  line: Having a washing line will save  you hundreds of dollars — sunlight is free,  and  dryers cost money to purchase and  operate. If a washing line is already provided, check that it’s not  only unobtrusive but  also  positioned to catch good  sunlight — north facing is ideal.  If a washing line isn’t already set  up, check that there’s somewhere you could install one.

9. Street appeal

Everyone knows  that you shouldn’t judge  a book  by its cover, and the  same goes  for a house. But when  you’re  making  such a large  purchase, it’s natural to want  to make  sure everything is perfect, inside and  out.  Here  are  some ideas of what  to look for when  you’re  approaching (or  leaving) the  open home inspection:

• Facade: First  impressions count, and  in the  case of a house or apartment block,  it’s the  facade that creates this  impression. Is the  paint fresh or starting to peel?  Is the  colour scheme a bit dated? If the  house has  wooden cladding, check it’s not  showing signs  of rot.
• Landscaping:  Is the  front  yard  a jungle  of overgrown weeds? If you’ve  got green thumbs, a challenging garden project may be exciting for you.  But if you’re  a novice with plants and  a lawnmower, and  have  little  interest in learning how  to do these chores, are  you willing to pay  someone to bring  the  front  yard  to a suitable standard, and  to maintain it afterwards?
• Privacy:  Do you like a front  yard  or apartment block  that is quite open to the  street, or do you prefer more privacy? The  type  of plants and  fence  used in the  front yard  or outside the  apartment block  can  affect  how  much passers-by can  look in, and  how  secure the  property is.

If you prefer more privacy and  security, look for higher fences in good  condition.

Karin Derkley is a the former deputy editor of Personal Investor magazine, and continues to write for The Age and AFR Smart Investor. She has also lived through the pleasures and pitfalls of purchasing and renovating her own home. She is the author of Buying Property for Dummies, published by Wiley. The Dummies brand is celebrating its 21st anniversary in Australia in March. This is an excerpt from Buying Property for Dummies.