Sometimes A One-Bedroom Is The Best Type Of House
One-bedroom houses have a bad reputation that is often undeserved. That reputation is based mainly on pressure from those who put resale value above all else, as well as pressure from pushy relatives who either want a place to stay or who want to pressure you into having kids, if you're buying the house with a partner. If you find a one-bedroom house that fits all of your needs, buying it could be a great move for the following reasons.
Future Rental Potential
Forget resale value; how about rental value? If you buy a one-bedroom house and decide to move to a bigger space after a few years, you can rent out the one-bedroom house and have another stream of income. That income could possibly cover your new mortgage, depending on how much you have paid off for the one-bedroom. Remember, you aren't limited to owning just one home. A one-bedroom house could be a great rental for quiet students who dislike having to deal with noise through the walls in apartment buildings, for example.
Possibly More Pre-Sale Renovation and Less Work
Because one-bedrooms can be difficult to sell -- everyone wants those two- and three-bedrooms -- the current owners of the one-bedroom house that you're considering might have done a lot more renovation work on it than someone selling a larger house might have done. That means that not only are you paying a lower price (since it's a smaller house), you could save a lot of post-move-in renovation costs. You'll still have to get the house inspected, of course, but you could be in for some major savings.
Downsizing
One more advantage to living in a one-bedroom house is that you don't have to furnish those extra spaces. If you buy a two-bedroom home, but it's just you and your spouse and neither of you are planning to have a home office or sleep in separate rooms, you're going to have an extra empty space. You could furnish it, but that's more money you have to spend. And if you're currently in a larger home and want to downsize, that one-bedroom would work perfectly.
Talk to your real estate agent about the one-bedroom single-family homes that are available. Stress that you want ones that have had a lot of the renovation work already done on them, and try to look at ones in areas where renting the house out later would be relatively easy. The agent should be only too happy to help you.
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