Playing the Zillow game, house hunting (or at least semi-seriously and starting to get more seriously house window shopping), I quickly started building up a checklist of things to verify. Priorities. Deal killers. Variables.
For example, a one-story property is a high priority – but a nice two-story with a master suite on the ground floor is acceptable. We have a price range which is firm – but if the perfect place came along and it’s “close” to that range, then we can talk.
Some things are absolute deal killers. I’m still working remotely and intend to keep doing it for a while, so an excellent, high-speed internet connection is a must, no questions asked.
Then there are the “softer” variables. How does the yard look? Does it have a pool or spa? Does it have solar already? Is it near a busy high school or mall or someplace with a lot of traffic? How old is it?
Beyond that, everyone has that “something” that they’re keeping an eye on, even if the real estate agent or other family members might not be. For me that’s, “How many Christmas lights can I put up? How many trees and bushes are there, and how much roofline and gutters to hang lights from? Are we on or near a major street where lots of people are going to see them, or are we off in the boonies where only a handful of folks will ever know, no matter how much time I spend hanging them?”
It’s not a deal killer, but it’s there in the back of my mind. The old house on Pomelo shown above from twenty years ago? That was a great house to hang lights on! The house we move to will be our last one, our “forever” home, so we need to get it right.
There are going to be a lot of Christmases there, they need to be celebrated with lights!
We Love The Stars Too Fondly 
+are there enough mature trees around to attract the birds?
-are people going to be bbq-ing and/or chainsawing every weekend?
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