Are you looking for a new home in the Orlando mortgage & Home Market? Here is a Handy Free Tool the HUD Home Buying Score Card.

Everyone experiences this common quandary when buying a house.

We view houses without a system in place to compare one house with another. And it can cost us.

You probably know what follows. You visit several houses for sale in the Orlando mortgage & home market. You return home to review your notes but suddenly you are puzzled. You can’t remember which house you liked and which ones you didn’t. How can you keep track of the homes?

You will find buying a house is all about contrast. Most likely, you will have already narrowed down your search to homes that are comparable in price. In fact if you have been preapproved by your mortgage lender, most of the homes you preview will likely fall into a similar price range. So you will need further criteria other than price to avoid confusion.

In order to compare homes it is wise to have a method. The Department of Housing and Urban Development or HUD has created its own score card. But before I clarify how it works, I recommend that you also include a camera as part of your previewing system.

With this in mind, your real estate agent is going to take you to see several houses based on information you have provided. To remember each house, use a camera to photograph important attributes. This way you can analyze similar pictures.

First, take a picture of the outside of each house. Then photograph the main rooms such as living room, family room, and kitchen.

Second take photos of the yards and any extra features about each house that you like as well as hate.

Last but not least photograph anything you think may be a potential problem.

Keep in mind that if you are methodical in your approach, you will be able to easily compare pictures of the major rooms of each house, the yards, extra features you thought were beneficial, and potential problems.

What is the HUD Home Buying Scorecard? It is a home buying checklist designed to remind you of important features in each home and to score each feature with a good, average, or poor score.
Now you need the HUD Home Buying Score Card go to hud.gov. Print out the pictures for each house and attach them to your score card.
Before you go on tour with your Realtor, print out or copy several HUD Scorecards so that you have one for each individual house. At the top write the address and list price for each home you are previewing.

Basically the scorecard highlights features from 4 important categories that everyone buying a house needs to consider.

Briefly the first category includes characteristic from the home itself such as square feet and number of bedrooms to roof age and condition of gutters and downspouts. Score each one.

The second category contrasts items related to neighborhoods and includes the appearances of nearby homes and businesses, traffic conditions, pet limitations, and garbage service.
Equally important, schools are the third category itemizing questions of age, condition, reputation, and curriculum.

Finally the last category for buying a house represents features that often pertain to convenience. You can score good, average, or poor for proximity to supermarkets, work, child care, restaurants, and church.

Now use this system to consider. Simply take the photos of each house and attach them to your scorecards. Next contrast the photos and scorecard of one house to another. You will be able to easily scrutinize and decide which house is best for you.

Who says buying a house has to be bewildering? Good luck and happy shopping! Always consult your real estate professional before taking pictures within a private residence.