It’s a discussion we hear all the time and has been going back and forth between property agents and potential buyers for decades: house or location?

Should you buy the house of your dreams in a far from perfect area or get a smaller house in the area you love? It’s quite a quandary, especially when you’re not in a position to lay down a large deposit or are only just about scraping enough together for a mortgage and are certainly lacking in wriggle-room when it comes to budget.

So, what’s the answer? Frustratingly, it’s as individual as you are and there are, of course, some grey areas that you might want to consider.

In praise of location

There can be any number of reasons why you want to live in the area you do but they probably boil down to three factors: you have friends and family who live in the same area or very nearby, your job is easy to get to from there and there are plenty of your favourite facilities around.

Take away just one of these factors and you might find yourself second guessing your decision but when they’re all in place, it does make sense.

There’s also the financial consideration to think about. While the area itself might be a little more expensive when it comes to house prices the fact that you can walk to most places, including to your place of work is real bonus. Take out the cost of running a car or public transport and you could be recouping your losses.

In praise of house size

Let’s face it, you spend most of your time in your own home and as such you should have somewhere that ticks all or at least most of your boxes. You really want a garden and off -road parking and you really can’t afford that anywhere else. You needed two spare rooms and this is still well within your budget. The extra cash you save will also mean you can decorate it to your exact tastes, pretty much as soon as you move in and deal with any buggy infestations with the Pest Control in OKC.

Take a good look at the area around you. Aside from not being as close as you’d like to family and friends does it have other things going for it. Is there a supermarket, ATM and grocery store you can walk to easily? If you’re a runner are there some open spaces you can use?

The area might not be perfect but the money you save and the home you’ll get will mean you can overlook these small annoyances.

The grey areas

In actual fact it’s likely that you’ll never get everything quite right and will have to compromise somewhere along the way. What house really has everything you need and which area doesn’t have its drawbacks? Often, there will be a way of accepting a slightly smaller property on the fringes of a location near your dream site that falls somewhere in between these two arguments.

The trick to making a decision about where to buy is to do some research into the property market and the areas you might think about living in. Keep an open mind and you’ll be surprised at what you might consider looking at and where you might consider living.

Have a list of your must-haves such as space to park or good access to the local bus network and stick to the fundamentals. If you can allow yourself to be flexible on every other aspect of your property and location, you might find that dream combination of home and area that fulfils all your expectations.

Start the process off by getting a short list of properties you’d like to visit and arrange some viewing times with an agent. This at least will give you some idea of what you can get for your money and how much people are willing to budge on the asking prices. Ask the agent to let you know when similar priced properties come onto the market.

Have a good walk around an area you might not have considered previously and get to know the secret pockets and hidden gems that might make you change your mind about your preferred option.

Moving home is a daunting task and at first can seem quite overwhelming but by giving yourself lots of time and keeping a more open mind you’ll find somewhere you can not only live with but enjoy knowing you’ve managed to get the best of both worlds.