When browsing houses, it's easy to focus only on the obvious things like square footage, curb appeal, cool features, and location. However, a popular Reddit thread asked "When buying a house, what's something you thought was minor but has become the bane of your existence?" and the responses highlight some important but often overlooked considerations when home buying.
One of the top comments: "Never buy a house where the kitchen, laundry, or living room wall is shared with the master bedroom if you are a light sleeper."
Another highly upvoted comment warns about invasive bamboo plants, something I experienced firsthand in a house I owned 20 years ago: "Someone before me planted super invasive, 15 foot tall growing bamboo in the backyard. It was spreading so wildly it was uplifting the granite pool and growing under the foundation of the house. You could see the remnants of a 'barrier' of sorts of where they initially planted it, obviously not knowing how bamboo grows. I myself did not know, until I purchased the house. Absolute nightmare."
Bad neighbors figured prominently, with horror stories like one commenter whose neighbor would skim dead bugs and debris out of their pool and toss it into the neighboring yard. The annoyed homeowner retaliated by flinging a bag of dog poop into the neighbor's pool. He said the neighbor would crank their car radio up full blast while mowing the backyard, forcing the whole street to listen. Another couple had a neighbor accuse them of intentionally making their Halloween decorations face the neighbor's house, prompting a ridiculous back-and-forth with pictures of Jesus hung in windows to "counteract the evil."
Other highly upvoted responses highlight issues like:
- Drainage problems causing flooded basements/yards
- Pools and extensive landscaping requiring high maintenance
- Awkward layouts with windows/paths compromising privacy
- Inconvenient laundry room locations
- Lack of storage space
- Expensive repairs like a new roof ($20,000+ for one user)
As one commenter summarized: "Rule of thumb, every nice thing, interesting extra or big thing means more maintenance."
Previously: Garage sale displeases neighbor
