With years of experience in the Hollywood, Florida area, former AAUG Realty president Gregor Gregory is the director at Northernlight. During his time at AAUG Realty, Gregor Gregory and his fellow realtors purchased properties near Florida waterways and helped build townhouses. There are several steps a first-time beach home buyer can take to avoid steep costs and a non-optimal experience.
Researching is the first step. Research the location’s culture and learn who your neighbors will be. Determine if vacationers visit the area. If so, find out when to determine how crowded your neighborhood is when they are not present.
Before purchasing a beach home, consider the maintenance and insurance costs. A beach home is exposed to the elements much more than an inland one; prepare to spend more money to repair any damage. Natural disaster-prone areas require flood and hurricane insurance to reduce unwanted costs. Research the geographic and meteorological properties of your home, so you can take advantage of the natural properties of the location, like viewing the sunset or letting the sea breeze blow through your home.
Once you purchase the home, find a knowledgeable, local home inspector with experience inspecting coastal homes. These homes face sustained wear and tear absent from inland homes; an inspector unfamiliar with them will not look for problems in the correct places. A licensed coastal home inspector delivers an accurate assessment so you can contend with the location’s conditions.
