One Simple Thing Convinced Me to Choose the House I'm Buying

I'm in the process of buying a house. I looked at many different properties before getting a mortgage and moving forward with my home purchase. But there was one simple thing that convinced me to buy the home I ultimately chose. Here's what it is.

This was the most important feature in a home for me

The house I've picked to buy needs a ton of work I didn't really want to do, and it is a little bit more expensive than I had initially hoped my new property would be. It also has a very strict homeowners association, which was something I was hoping to avoid.

Despite these downsides, though, I knew it was the property for me the moment I saw it because of one simple factor: the location.

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See, the house is in my chosen neighborhood, which I selected because the commute times to everything important to me are very short. I had previously bought a house in a different neighborhood that left me stuck in horrible traffic every time I wanted to go anywhere and made me miserable. With this house, I don't have to get on the busy interstate and I can get to entertainment, restaurants, and stores in mere minutes.

My house is also on a prime lot in my chosen neighborhood. Most homes in my desired area back up into other houses, which wasn't something I was willing to deal with. There were just a few properties with lake views, and I managed to snag one of them, which was a major coup.

Because of the unbeatable location, I was willing to put up with all of the other downsides.

Should you prioritize location, too?

If you're buying a house, there are a few excellent reasons why you should make location one of your top criteria -- if not the top criteria -- that you consider when deciding if a property is the right one for you. Here's what they are.

• Your commute time is going to impact your daily life more than almost anything else. A long and miserable commute means less time to enjoy your family or hobbies. It means you start and end each day coping with stress. Very little else about a home is going to have such a big impact on your quality of life. In fact, studies have conclusively shown that long commute times damage both health and life satisfaction.
• You can't change your location. Almost every single thing about a house can be changed, but the location can't. You cannot move a house to a lot with a better view or one with a shorter commute. You're stuck where you are.
• A good location can impact property values. Views and a centralized location matter not just to you but to future buyers as well. There's only so many houses in desirable areas and only so many houses with good views. If you can snag one of them, this should help you enjoy more property appreciation.

When you go house hunting, be sure not to compromise on this one issue, or you could regret it as you sit in traffic or find yourself staring into a neighbor's messy yard instead of a view you're proud to call your own.